Articles

Conditions in the labour market have deteriorated over the past 18-24 months, as the unemployment rate has risen from 4.0% in December 2023 to 5.1% just a year later. The unemployment rate has continued to rise in 2025, reaching 5.3% in the September quarter, up from 5.2% in June.

When we publish the 2025 REPs and SPs early in 2026, we will make larger than usual revisions due to a raft of changes to our methodologies. This article describes the changes we are making and what they will mean for you.

The effect of AI on the labour market and broader economy is highly uncertain, but research is beginning to emerge that looks at the exposure of tasks within occupations to generative AI automation or augmentation.

Resilience continues to be an important long-term factor for the New Zealand economy, and our Chart of the Month highlights the continued emergency challenges we face over time.

Falling interest rates and limited growth in labour costs continued to keep overall transport costs in check in the September quarter.

Infometrics was proud to sponsor the recent Economic Development New Zealand (EDNZ) 2025 Annual Conference, with a focus on “Local Strength, Global Reach”. As part of the conference, we shared an economic update and some analysis of key trends that the Infometrics team has noticed emerging as influential focus areas for economic development over the last year.

Economic recovery is getting underway across most of New Zealand’s regions, according to Infometrics’ latest monitoring of regional economies.

The pace of supplier cost increases to Foodstuffs supermarkets quickened last month, with the Infometrics-Foodstuffs New Zealand Grocery Supplier Cost Index (GSCI) showing an average 2.5% increase in what suppliers charged in October 2025, compared to a year earlier.

The mix of light passenger vehicles that make up New Zealand’s fleet has been changing in many ways over the past two decades.

The housing market has attracted plenty of attention in recent months. Housing Minister Chris Bishop’s desire for falling house prices was at odds with the Prime Minister’s hope for “modest, consistent” increases in house prices, with the latter seemingly buying into the view that the economy will struggle to grow if the housing market is stagnant.