New Zealand
Everything Palanor holds about New Zealand, in one place: 169 public signals, what its economy runs on, how often America’s largest companies name it, the news that names it, and Country Posture. Every figure is computed from stored readings and carries its source and date.
OceaniaAsia-PacificOECD
The latest read
- GDP in current U.S. dollars: $264.1 billion (2025); record high since 1960; 1y +1.0%.
- Real GDP growth: 0.46% (2025); 22nd percentile since 1961; 1y +1.33 pts.
- Consumer price inflation: 2.84% (2025); 46th percentile since 1960; lowest since 2020; 1y −0.08 pts.
- Unemployment: 5.08% (2025); 41st percentile since 1991; highest since 2016; 1y +0.36 pts.
- Household consumption, share of GDP: 57% of GDP (2024); 10th percentile since 1990; lowest since 2020; 1y −0.5 pts.
- Net exports, share of GDP: -1.25% of GDP (2024); 13th percentile since 1990; highest since 2020; 1y +1.35 pts.
- S&P 500 companies naming it on earnings calls: 1.31% of companies (2026-10-21); 4th percentile since Dec 2021; lowest since Jul 31, 2026; 1y −1.54 pts.
Country Posture
What New Zealand’s economy is doing
Momentum
2025Inputs only. Did not pass the pre-registered back-test: 1996–2009: AUC 0.590 below 0.60; AUC 0.590 below the single-input baseline (0.624); 2010–2022: AUC 0.595 below 0.60; AUC 0.595 below the single-input baseline (0.641).
Inputs
| Real GDP growth | 0.5 |
| Growth against its three-year average | -1.0 |
| Change in unemployment | 0.4 |
| Change in the employment rate | -0.4 |
| Export volume growth | — |
| OECD leading indicator | — |
Resilience
202548Moderate buffers
0 = thin buffers · 100 = deep buffers
Moved most by reserves, months of imports (up) and current account (up) since the year before.
Inputs
| Interest as a share of revenue (2024) | 4.7 | 44 |
| Budget balance (2024) | -2.3 | 39 |
| Reserves, months of imports | 3.9 | 66 |
| Current account | -3.5 | 40 |
| Governance (WGI mean) | 1.68 | 50 |
| External debt | — | — |
Pressure
2025Inputs only. Did not pass the pre-registered back-test: 1996–2009: AUC 0.657 below the single-input baseline (0.672).
Inputs
| Inflation | 2.8 |
| Change in inflation | -0.1 |
| Currency move against the dollar | 4.0% |
| Conflict deaths per million | 0.0 |
| Political stability | 1.18 |
| Private credit, three-year change | -2.6 |
| Bond spread over U.S. Treasuries | 0.2 |
Posture describes what an economy is doing; it is not a rating and never ranks countries. Each input is read against the country’s own history and against every other economy that year. An axis shows a score only after passing a back-test fixed before any result was computed. Method and back-test.
Country Schemas
Where New Zealand is in its cycles
Where New Zealand sits in eight long cycles, each read from published statistics against a method fixed before any reading was computed. A stage describes; it is not a rating, and no stage is better or worse than another.
- Development stage
High mass consumption99% · 2025
Pre-take-offTake-offDrive to maturityHigh mass consumption20002025
- Demographic stage
Low stationary99% · 2025
High stationaryEarly expandingLate expandingLow stationaryDeclining20002025
- Debt cycle stage
Deleveraging88% · 2025
Early cycleLeveragingLate cycleDeleveraging20002025
- External balance stage
Mature debtor68% · 2025
Immature debtorMature debtorDebt repayerImmature creditorMature creditorCredit disinvestor20002025
- Export structure stage
Commodity-reliant68% · 2025
Commodity-reliantDiversifyingManufacturing exporterComplex exporter20002025
- Structural pressure
Low76% · 2025
LowBuildingHighAcute20002025
- Middle-class stage
No reading.
Pre-middle-classEmerging middle classMiddle-class majorityAffluentNot enough of this schema’s evidence is published for this country.
- Electoral cycle
Pre-election99% · 2026-10
Post-electionMid-termPre-election2020-112026-10
Passport reach
Where a New Zealand passport opens doors
The share of world GDP, outside New Zealand itself, in the economies whose published rules let a holder of this passport in, as of October 2026. Palanor records the rules of destinations holding 88% of world GDP, from each government’s own list, and weights them by World Bank GDP for 2025. Rank is among 199 passports.
Work
30.2%rank 27 of 199
the right to work (free movement in full; treaty and working-holiday routes at half); 1 destination in full, 30 at half.
Recorded changes
Investment migration programs
- Active Investor Plus Visa residence · OpenGovernment minimum $2,842,532 for one person, $2,842,532 for a family of four (agent fees excluded).
Reach is shown here and not weighted into Country Strength: it rewards membership of a free-movement area or a treaty more than the strength of an economy. Entry is always at the border officer’s discretion, and conditions (length of stay, fees, age limits) vary. Method, sources and the full ranking: Passports and citizenship.
Palanor calculation from each destination government's published rules; GDP weights from the World Bank (CC BY 4.0), one year for the whole line, so it moves only when a list changes.
GDP by expenditure
What New Zealand’s economy runs on
In 2024, household spending was 57.0% of GDP, government consumption 21.1%, investment 23.1% and net exports -1.3% (exports 24.7%, imports 26.0%).
World Bank national accounts. The parts can miss 100 by a few points (the statistical discrepancy).
Same World Bank definition for every country, so the shares compare directly: What each economy runs on.
IMF World Economic Outlook
The IMF’s outlook for New Zealand
The latest year before the October 2026 edition (often still an IMF estimate) and the IMF’s own projections. These are the IMF’s published forecasts, shown as published; Palanor does not project them further. Since the previous edition the IMF cut its growth forecast for this year by 0.1 percentage points (Palanor calculation).
| Measure | 2025 | 2026 IMF f’cast | 2027 IMF f’cast | 2031 IMF f’cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real GDP growth% | 0.3 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 2.4 |
| Inflation, average consumer prices% | 2.8 | 4.1 | 2.8 | 2.0 |
| Unemployment rate% of labor force | 5.3 | 5.4 | 5.1 | 4.3 |
| GDP, current US dollarsUS$ bn | 259.5 | 273.4 | 289.0 | 341.6 |
| GDP at purchasing-power parityintl $ bn | 297.4 | 313.7 | 331.8 | 394.7 |
| GDP per person, US dollarsUS$ | 48,749 | 51,043 | 53,636 | 61,937 |
| Current account balance% of GDP | -3.0 | -3.4 | -3.4 | -3.0 |
| Government gross debt% of GDP | 54.7 | 57.1 | 58.0 | 55.4 |
| Government net debt% of GDP | 25.9 | 28.3 | 29.4 | 26.9 |
| Government overall balance% of GDP | -4.0 | -4.1 | -3.3 | -0.5 |
| Government primary balance% of GDP | -3.0 | -3.2 | -2.3 | 0.5 |
| Government net interest paid% of GDP · Palanor calc. | 0.9 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database (edition on the projection). Dashed: the IMF's published projection.
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database (edition on the projection). Dashed: the IMF's published projection.
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database, October 2026. Provided by the IMF “as is” and free of charge from the IMF; the IMF does not endorse Palanor. Net interest paid is a Palanor calculation: the IMF's primary balance minus its overall balance.
Charts
The headline series
Discourse
How often S&P 500 companies name New Zealand
6 of 445 S&P 500 companies named New Zealand on an earnings call in the 90 days to 2026-10-21. 3.5% list it in the risk factors of their latest 10-K. Names only, counted by fixed rules set before any document was read; a mention says the country came up, not why.
News
In the news
- Flydubai co-pilot trained in New Zealand before attack
A Flydubai co-pilot accused of attacking his captain and attempting to crash a flight into Israel completed part of his flight training in New Zealand and had planned the attack before being hired, officials say.
Palanor Wire2026-10-06negative · -attack
- The five o'clock signal: what New Zealand quit culture tells us about the next wage war
When leaving on time becomes viral content, the boundary itself has become a negotiating point—and cities that enforce it are pricing accordingly.
Palanor Wire2026-06-01negative · -war
- At 5 pm, people actually stop working: What a viral post says about labor arbitrage
A Colombian transplant in New Zealand went viral for noticing what economists rarely track—when the workday ends, and what that means for where talent settles.
Palanor Wire2026-06-01neutral
- CII urges exporters, MSMEs to tap opportunities under India-New Zealand FTA
Marketaux (financial news API)2026-10-22neutral
- New Zealand court strikes down puberty blocker ban reut.rs/4i0cLZO
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-22negative · -strikes -ban
- New Zealand's Fisher & Paykel Healthcare hit by cyber breach reut.rs/3W2rgDJ
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-21neutral
- New Zealand: Employment Court ruling clarifies that charging migrant workers overseas recruitment fees is illegal
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre2026-10-20neutral
- New Zealand firm Valocity secures biggest-ever deal on day one of India FTA: PM Luxon
Marketaux (financial news API)2026-10-20positive · +deal
- New Zealand adds Brazil, Canada talks as India pact starts reut.rs/4yui20s
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-19neutral
- New Zealand: Kiwibank workers strike over 2.25% pay offer despite bank's $174 million profit
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre2026-10-18negative · -strike
- New Zealand: Employment Court rules Calendar Girls strip club dancers are employees, not contractors, setting industry precedent
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre2026-10-15neutral
- New Zealand to help Fiji overhaul intelligence agencies reut.rs/3W6KIPG
Reuters · Bluesky2026-10-15neutral
- New Zealand: Indian cook subjected to wage theft & 70-hour work weeks at Auckland restaurant
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre2026-10-14neutral
- New Zealand: Employment court rules cash-for-job schemes illegal even when payments made overseas
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre2026-10-13neutral
Headlines that name New Zealand, matched by name with fixed rules (a wrong match is worse than a missing one). Tone is read from each headline’s own words; no model reads or summarizes an article, and other publishers’ stories link out.
Company graph
Companies headquartered in New Zealand
Palanor’s company graph holds 87 entities headquartered here (GLEIF headquarters address, else legal address).
Signals
Every series about New Zealand
Grouped by theme, the most-read first. All 169 in the Library.
Growth and output10 of 40
- New Zealand · GDP · USD bn (current)record high since 1960; 1y +1.0%$264.1bn2025
- New Zealand · Real GDP Growth · % y/y22nd percentile since 1961; 1y +1.33 pts0.46%2025
- New Zealand · Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Value Added · % of GDPrecord low since 1971; 1y −0.568 pts4.01% of GDP2023
- New Zealand · Industry (incl. Construction) Value Added · % of GDP3rd percentile since 1971; 1y −0.197 pts19.4% of GDP2023
- New Zealand · Manufacturing Value Added · % of GDPrecord low since 1971; 1y −0.646 pts8.27% of GDP2023
- New Zealand · Services Value Added · % of GDPrecord high since 1971; 1y +0.831 pts68.2% of GDP2023
- New Zealand · GDP per Capita · PPP USDrecord high since 1990; 1y +2.8%57,350 usd2025
- New Zealand: GDP per Hour Worked at Purchasing-Power Parity95th percentile since 1995; highest since 2022; 1y +1.2%512025
- New Zealand: GDP per Person at Purchasing-Power Parity89th percentile since 1995; lowest since 2021; 1y −0.2%48,2332025
- New Zealand: GDP per Person, Current U.S. Dollars95th percentile since 1995; highest since 2021; 1y +0.3%49,591 USD2025
Prices1 of 3
- New Zealand · Inflation · CPI % y/y46th percentile since 1960; lowest since 2020; 1y −0.08 pts2.84%2025
Jobs and people at work5 of 6
- New Zealand · Unemployment Rate (OECD Harmonised, Quarterly)56th percentile since Jan 1986; highest since Jul 2015; 1y +0.4 pts5.6% of labour force2026-04-01
- Average annual hours worked · New Zealandrecord low since 1990; 1y −1.0%1,723 hours2025
- New Zealand · Female Labor Force Participation · %90th percentile since 1990; lowest since 2021; 1y −0.18 pts66.1%2025
- New Zealand · Male Labor Force Participation · %63rd percentile since 1990; lowest since 2015; 1y −0.23 pts74.7%2025
- New Zealand · Unemployment Rate · %41st percentile since 1991; highest since 2016; 1y +0.36 pts5.08%2025
Money, rates and credit3 of 4
- New Zealand 10-Year Government Bond Yield (Monthly)27th percentile since Jan 1970; highest since Nov 2023; 1y +0.65 pts4.94%2026-09-01
- New Zealand · Central Bank Policy Rate (IMF)24th percentile since Mar 1999; 1y −1.00 pts2.25%2026-05-01
- Reserve Bank of New Zealand Total Assets · % of New Zealand GDP85th percentile since Oct 1993; highest since Jan 2025; 1y −2.99 pts17.7% of GDP2026-01-01
Stock market and listed companies2
- New Zealand Share Prices (OECD, 2015 = 100)96th percentile since Jan 1967; 1y +1.2%166.92026-09-01
- New Zealand Share Prices, Change Over a Year (OECD)37th percentile since Jan 1968; lowest since Aug 2025; 1y −1.10 pts1.16% y/y2026-09-01
Government and debt10 of 17
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Family (% of GDP)43rd percentile since 1980; lowest since 2017; 1y −0.06 pts2.52% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Health and Disability (% of GDP)record high since 1980; 1y +1.64 pts12.4% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Old Age and Survivors (% of GDP)57th percentile since 1980; 1y +0.07 pts5.15% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Other Social Policy (% of GDP)94th percentile since 1980; 1y −1.25 pts4.07% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Total (% of GDP)record high since 1980; 1y +0.4 pts24.6% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Public Social Spending: Unemployment (% of GDP)36th percentile since 1980; lowest since 2019; 1y −0.02 pts0.53% of GDP2022
- New Zealand · Interest · % of Revenue (central govt)43rd percentile since 1972; highest since 2013; 1y +0.47 pts4.65%2024
- New Zealand · Budget Balance · % GDP (central govt)41st percentile since 1972; highest since 2021; 1y +0.79-2.33 pct_gdp2024
- New Zealand · Interest · % of Expense (central govt)9th percentile since 1972; highest since 2019; 1y +0.25 pts2.97%2022
- New Zealand · 10-Year Government Bond Yield · annual avg32nd percentile since 1990; lowest since 2022; 1y −0.086 pts4.47%2025
Trade and capital flows2 of 3
- New Zealand · Current Account · % GDP44th percentile since 2000; highest since 2020; 1y +1.09-3.54 pct_gdp2025
- New Zealand · Net International Investment Position, % of GDP (IMF)record high since 2000; 1y +2.56 pts-43.5% of GDP2025
Energy and resources2 of 6
- Lamb Price, New Zealand (Monthly)82nd percentile since Jan 1971; lowest since Apr 2026; 1y +16.3%7.26 USD/kg2026-09-01
- New Zealand · Electric Car Share of New Car Sales84th percentile since 2010; 1y +1.00 pts12% of new car sales2025
Conflict and geopolitics4 of 10
- New Zealand · Governance · WGI six-dimension meanrecord low since 1996; 1y −1.4%1.68 index2025
- New Zealand · Political Stability · WGI6th percentile since 1996; lowest since 2003; 1y −5.4%1.18 index2025
- New Zealand · Regulatory Quality · WGI43rd percentile since 1996; 1y +1.1%1.85 index2025
- New Zealand · Rule of Law · WGIrecord low since 1996; 1y −2.8%1.66 index2025
Aid in and out2
- New Zealand · Foreign Aid (Official Development Assistance) · US$ billions68th percentile since 2015; lowest since 2022; 1y −13.0%0.68 US$ billions2025
- New Zealand · ODA as % of GNI31st percentile since 2018; lowest since 2022; 1y −0.05 pts0.27% of GNI2025
Migration4 of 6
- International Migrant Stock: New Zealand (UN)record high since 19901,467,989 people2024
- International Migrants as a Share of Population: New Zealand (UN)record high since 199028.2% of population2024
- U.S.-Born People Living in New Zealand (UN)record high since 199032,863 people2024
- Change in Migrant Share of Population Since 2000: New Zealand (UN)10.42024
AI stance and technology1 of 3
- AI User Share: New Zealand (Microsoft AI Diffusion)1y +6.50 pts44.1% of people aged 15-642026-06-30
Climate and the physical world4 of 6
- New Zealand · Arable Land · % of land88th percentile since 1961; 1y +0.01 pts1.98% of land area2024
- New Zealand · Renewable Freshwater · m³ per person2nd percentile since 1961; 1y +0.1%64,3492022
- New Zealand · Forest Area · % of landrecord high since 1990; 1y +0.25 pts38.9%2024
- New Zealand · PM2.5 Exposure · µg/m³15th percentile since 1990; lowest since 2006; 1y −12.7%6.35 µg/m³2020
Health and living standards9
- New Zealand · Life Expectancy at Birth · years95th percentile since 1960; highest since 2021; 1y +0.3%82 years2024
- New Zealand · Access to Electricity · % of populationrecord high since 1990; 1y unchanged100%2024
- New Zealand · Human Development Index · UNDP88th percentile since 1990; 1y +0.5%0.94 index2023
- New Zealand · Basic Drinking Water Access · % of populationrecord high since 2000; 1y unchanged100%2024
- New Zealand · Safely Managed Drinking Water · % of populationrecord high since 2000; 1y unchanged100%2024
- New Zealand · Undernourishment · % of populationrecord high since 2001; 1y unchanged2.5%2024
- New Zealand · Antidepressants: Daily Doses per 1,000 Peoplerecord high since 2018; 1y +4.1%104.62025
- New Zealand · Anxiolytics (Anti-Anxiety Drugs): Daily Doses per 1,000 Peoplerecord low since 2018; 1y unchanged3.82025
- New Zealand · Sleeping Pills (Hypnotics and Sedatives): Daily Doses per 1,000 Peoplerecord high since 2018; 1y +3.1%19.82025
Sentiment and attention1
- New Zealand · Search Attention78th percentile since Sep 2021; 1y +4.9%43 index2026-09-20
More about this country1 of 15
- New Zealand · Exchange Rate per US Dollar (IMF)79th percentile since Jan 1957; lowest since Feb 2026; 1y −0.1%1.69 per USD2026-08-01
Peers
Elsewhere in Oceania
Alphabetical. Palanor does not rank countries.
American SamoaAustraliaCook IslandsFijiFrench PolynesiaGuamKiribatiMarshall IslandsMicronesiaNauruNew CaledoniaNiueNorthern Mariana IslandsPalauPapua New GuineaSamoaSolomon IslandsTongaTuvaluVanuatu