NZ: Regional economic confidence improves marginally - Westpac

According to the Westpac-McDermott Miller Regional Economic Confidence survey, NZ’s regional economic confidence improved marginally in the quarter ending June 2018, with six of eleven regions showing an improvement over the previous quarter, notes Paul Clark, Industry Economist at Westpac.

Key Quotes

“Six of eleven regions posted an improvement in regional economic confidence.”

“Aucklanders are the most negative about their region’s economic prospects and are becoming more pessimistic.”

“Households in Nelson/Marlborough/West Coast and the Bay of Plenty are the most optimistic about the future and confidence in both regions is well up on last quarter.”

“Economic confidence in regions most closely associated with dairy and/or oil exploration has deteriorated significantly.”

“Consumer confidence (a measure of households’ views of their own economic conditions) fell in eight of eleven regions.”