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Economic statistics

The Auckland economy has been hit harder by the recession than the rest of the country. Output in Auckland declined by 1.4% (compared with a national decline of 0.9%) in the year to March 2009 and the following twelve months are again likely to be weak.

The average number of people employed in the Auckland region was 713,000 during the year to March 2009 - a 0.5% decline from the average employment numbers of 717,000 in the previous year. This decline in employment broke a 17-year uninterrupted period of employment growth during which the number of people with jobs increased by 70%.

In the March 2009 quarter, Auckland employees were earning an average of $1002 per week, 5.4% more than the national average of $951.

New Zealand, and with it Auckland, remains relatively well placed to pull out of the recession more readily than many other countries. Factors that will help the local economy out of the recession include:

  • the fortuitous timing of our fiscal stimulus
  • the robust state of our financial sector compared with the US and Europe, enabling lending activity here to pick up earlier
  • the competitiveness of our export sector, which would be significantly enhanced by a depreciating New Zealand dollar, and
  • the housing sector, which is currently being under supplied compared with underlying demand.

Further information can be found in the annual Auckland region Business and Economy report. This year's report has a focus on ‘thinking outside the square' and it includes contributions from a range of invited authors.

Business and Economy Report 2009 (1.8 MB PDF)

For further information on economic statistics, please contact the Social and Economic Research and Monitoring Team at the ARC.

Economic monitoring

The delivery of the Auckland Regional Economic Development Strategy (AREDS) and the Metro Action Plan is accompanied by regular reporting on progress towards the broad social, economic and environmental outcomes.

These outcomes are outlined in AREDS, and towards the successful completion of the actions, as outlined in the Metro Project Action Plan.

Follow this link for Metro Project progress updates.

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