Source: Radio New Zealand
ASB said Canterbury secured its third quarterly win of 2025. RNZ / Nate McKinnon
ASB’s latest Regional Economic Scoreboard shows Canterbury leading New Zealand’s regional growth, Auckland making strong gains, and Wellington slipping to the bottom of the rankings.
Canterbury scored back-to-back economic wins in ASB’s latest regional economic survey.
Canterbury finished the final quarter of 2025 on a strong note, once again topping ASB’s Regional Economic Scoreboard as the country’s best‑performing regional economy.
Otago and Waikato tied for second place, while Auckland jumped from seventh to fourth.
ASB said Canterbury secured its third quarterly win of 2025, outperforming the rest of the country in employment, retail spending, housing activity and population growth.
Chief economist Nick Tuffley said the South Island continued to lead New Zealand’s multi‑speed recovery.
“Canterbury has delivered back‑to‑back wins to close out the year, supported by strong dairy incomes, steady jobs growth, resilient consumer spending and the recovery of the tourism sector,” he said.
Otago’s ranking was boosted by a strong tourism rebound, while Waikato benefited from a robust primary sector and an improving labour market.
ASB expects the upcoming Fonterra capital return from the sale of Mainland to further lift dairy farming regions through increased spending and investment.
Auckland’s rise was driven by gains in retail spending, construction activity and consumer confidence, although its labour market remains subdued.
Tuffley said Auckland’s move up the rankings showed the economic upswing was widening beyond the regions that led earlier in the cycle.
At the other end of the table, Wellington finished last, weighed down by ongoing weakness in the housing market, construction activity and discretionary spending, despite relatively strong employment growth.
Tuffley said Wellington’s economy should improve, helped by low interest rates, but emerging challenges could slow the pace of recovery.
Nationally, ASB said the economy showed signs of growth in the final quarter of 2025 as lower interest rates lifted retail spending and employment indicators stabilised.
However, Tuffley warned the conflict in the Middle East would pose fresh headwinds through higher energy costs and rising inflation.
“The situation and extent of any impact to growth and inflation is highly uncertain and will depend on how long the conflict goes on for,” he said.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
