New Zealand sees record high in citizen departures since 2012 as economy cools
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Foreign workers are also increasingly reluctant to head to New Zealand, resulting in a steady decline in net annual immigration to 13,702 – the lowest since November 2022.
PHOTO: UNSPLASH
WELLINGTON – New Zealand recorded the most citizen departures in 13 years in the 12 months through June, reducing the net gain through immigration to the lowest in more than two and a half years.
Some 71,851 citizens departed the country in the period, the most since June 2012, said Statistics New Zealand on Aug 15 in Wellington. There were 25,353 returning citizens, resulting in a net exodus of 46,497.
Many citizens have opted to look overseas – particularly to Australia – for better-paying jobs amid a cooling economy and rising unemployment at home.
Foreign workers are also increasingly reluctant to head to New Zealand when work is scarce, resulting in a steady decline in net annual immigration to 13,702 – the lowest since November 2022.
Net annual immigration is down from a peak of 135,529 in October 2023.
While citizen departures have increased, it is the slump in arrivals that has mainly driven the overall decline in net immigration.
The economy is struggling to recover from a deep recession in 2024, with unemployment rising as businesses curb investment and hiring.
Some local economists predict growth stalled in the three months through June while the Reserve Bank has projected annual average growth of just 0.7 per cent in 2025.
About 59 per cent of all citizen departures were to Australia, the statistics agency said, citing data for the year ended December that is the most recent available.
Citizen departure rates tend to be concentrated in younger age groups, with 38 per cent of those leaving in the year through June aged between 18 and 30, the statistics agency said. Bloomberg
