Quarterly economic update

Buller District ranks second in the country for GDP growth for the year ending December 2021 compared to the year ending December 2020 according to a report released today.

But the district drops to 54th place when comparing the quarter ending December 2021 versus the same period in 2020.

Buller District Council Mayor Jamie Cleine says overall this is a strong performance for Buller given the challenges the district is facing.

“The increase of 12.3% in Buller’s GDP is very positive news. The slump at the end of last year is telling and shows the slowdown that the district has faced, given our challenges.

Overall, we had a solid 12-months and we are well placed to take the ups with the downs.”

The report also shows a 30.8% increase in house values in Buller and a 53.3% increase in residential consents in Buller District.

Mayor Cleine says while the increase in residential consents is not surprising it highlights the added pressure on some parts of council and the building industry.

“We cannot underestimate the toll the flood events have had on our community and the widespread impacts.

We will continue to work with partner agencies and the community to maintain our resilience, and a positive social and economic future.”

The report by Infometrics shows with the exception of the Upper North Island, which was affected by various Covid restrictions for much of the December quarter, most parts of the country experienced a brief but determined bounce back in activity after the September quarter lockdown.

There was substantial regional variation, with a longer period of alert level and traffic light restrictions keeping upper North Island activity lower than last summer. Other areas saw a rush back to building, manufacturing, and primary sector activities in December, alongside strong summer holiday spending boosts in many areas. Expectations remain for the Omicron outbreak to disrupt this rebound and economic activity over the early stages of 2022.

For the year ending December 2021, Grey District experienced 11% GDP growth, Westland 7.1%, and the country overall recorded a national average of 2.8% growth.

-ENDS-

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For more information please contact:
Mayor Jamie Cleine
Buller District Council
Jamie.cleine@bdc.govt.nz