NZIER Consensus Forecasts suggest that activity in the New Zealand economy remains soft in the near term

The latest NZIER Consensus Forecasts show that the economic growth outlook remains broadly unchanged relative to the previous release of Consensus Forecasts. GDP forecasts continue to suggest sluggish growth in the year to March 2025 before picking up to 2.2 percent in the following year. These reflect the expectations that activity in the New Zealand economy will remain soft in the near term. BusinessNZ’s PMI and PSI measures of manufacturing and services sector performance and NZIER’s Quarterly Survey of Business Opinion measure of firms’ domestic trading activity also point to continued weak activity in the economy. Beyond 2025, lower interest rates are expected to drive a pick-up in growth.