The incoming net migration in New Zealand continued to slow down from a peak last year when a growing number of long-term visitors left the country, on top of more Kiwis leaving for Australia.
The net migration was 63,800 in the year ending July 31, compared with 72,400 a year earlier, according to Statistics New Zealand. A net outflow of 5,300 people in July continued the downward trend and reduced the economic impulse of an expanding population.
A net outflow of Australians, Chinese and British contributed nearly half of the turnaround of the last 12 months, especially Chinese with a permanent visa and student visa. Filipinos on permanent residence permits have also registered a sharp turnaround.
"Although the annual net migration is lower than a year ago, according to historical standards, it is still high," said Stokes NZ Chief Inspector Brooke Theyers, in a statement.
"Smaller countries such as New Zealand and Ireland generally have larger fluctuations in net migration figures, simply because they have a small population."
The incoming migration figures from New Zealand have been flattered by a meager Australian economy in recent years. Kiwis have generally sought a better life in the Tasman, but tend to stay home for the past five years because the economy of New Zealand was buzzing and there were relatively many jobs.
The total figure for net migration was often quoted by politicians on the campaign track last year, because it emphasizes domestic infrastructure that needs to be improved. International students, in particular, were chosen, despite the fact that they accounted for about 20 percent of the arrivals, while many remained there only for the duration of their studies.
Senior economist at Westpac Banking Corp., Satish Ranchhod, said the increase in the number of departures and the declining net migration reflected "the increase in the number of temporary work and student visa arrivals that we saw in previous years," with much of those people left after three to four years.
"We expect migration to continue to decline in the coming years, which will reduce population growth in the process," Ranchhod said.
"This reinforces our expectations for a period of soft demand growth in the coming years."
Strong tourism in New Zealand is also to blame for the extra burden on the infrastructure. Today's data show that the short-term arrival in July increased by 1.4 percent to 251,000 in July, for an annual increase of 3.6 percent to 3.79 million, corresponding to around 78 percent of the population of New Zealand .
ASB Bank senior economist Mark Smith said the trend in visitor arrivals suggested that the numbers were at a historically high level, with capacity being stretched during peak periods due to the economic boom in tourism.
"The lower NZD / USD will help to increase incomes, but stronger tourist capacity growth and better utilization of the NZ tourist offer in the shoulder and low seasons will be needed to sustain the incomes in the sector in the future. support, "Smith said.
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