Source: New Zealand Parliament – Hansard
Question No. 2—Finance
2. HELEN WHITE (Labour) to the Minister of Finance: What recent reports has he seen on the New Zealand economy?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Minister of Finance): The manufacturing sector has remained robust in a challenging environment. The seasonally adjusted BNZ – Business New Zealand Performance and Manufacturing Index for May rose 1.7 points to 52.9, just below its long-term average. Production, new orders, employment, and delivery of raw materials all expanded, and BNZ’s economists said that manufacturing output in the first three months of the 2022 year had been affected by Omicron-induced delays and the improvement in production signalled a decent rebound in manufacturing in the June quarter. The volatile global environment means 2022 is continuing to be challenging for businesses and households, but New Zealand’s strong response to the pandemic has put us in a position where we can come through better than most other countries and are well positioned to deal with the challenges ahead of us.
Helen White: What other reports has he seen on the economy?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: Retail card spending has also remained resilient. Statistics New Zealand reported earlier this month that seasonally adjusted retail card spending rose 1.9 percent in May compared with the previous month, led by fuel and clothing sales. Stripping out fuel, core spending rose by 0.9 percent. The figures indicate that spending patterns are returning to a normal pattern following the end of COVID restrictions and the opening up to the rest of the world.
Helen White: What support has been available for businesses as the economy deals with the challenges of Omicron?
Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: The targeted COVID support payment has helped keep viable the vulnerable businesses through the peak of Omicron. As of June, this payment had paid out $1.3 billion to 112,877 applicants. On a regional basis, Auckland has received 50.5 percent of the payments, followed by Christchurch on 9.6 percent and Wellington on 8 percent. By industry, construction made up 15.2 percent of all payments, followed by accommodation on 14.8 percent, other services on 9.3 percent, and retail trade on 8 percent. This payment has provided cash flow and confidence to help protect jobs and support New Zealand businesses through a very difficult time. We stand by the decisions that the Government has made to support businesses and households to get through Omicron and give us the strong basis to move forward from now.
