Summarised by Centrist
New Zealanders are leaving in their biggest numbers since 2012, with 71,851 citizens departing in the year to June and only 25,353 returning. That’s a net loss of nearly 47,000 people, according to new data from Stats NZ.
Most of them are young. Thirty-eight percent of those leaving were aged between 18 and 30. About 59 percent went to Australia, chasing higher pay and better job prospects.
It is not just citizens leaving. Fewer foreign workers are arriving as well, driving total net immigration down to just 13,702. That is the lowest level since 2022 and a sharp drop from the 135,529 peak recorded in October 2023.
The exodus comes as the economy struggles to recover from last year’s deep recession. Bloomberg reports that unemployment is rising and growth has likely stalled again in the June quarter. The Reserve Bank expects annual GDP to crawl forward at just 0.7 percent.
Read more over at Bloomberg (paywalled)
