New Zealand lost more than 1000 citizens a week in the year to March 31, amid a contracting economy and rising unemployment. What can they expect in the countries they’re moving to?
For every citizen who migrated back to New Zealand in the year ended March 2024, another three New Zealanders decided to leave the country, according to Stats NZ.
The record net migration loss of 52,000 New Zealand citizens came at the same time the country experienced a net migration gain of 163,000 non-citizens.
As Q+A presenter Jack Tame wrote last week, New Zealand’s population grew amid a recession, a 25% drop in consents for new dwellings, an increase in the average rent, inflation that still sits at 4%, and an expectation that unemployment will soon top 5%.
“Young Zealanders now find themselves competing with more people for relatively fewer houses and relatively fewer jobs,” Tame wrote.
“And, as we enter a winter of economic discontent, who could blame them for leaving?”
But what are those same economic measures looking like in the countries New Zealand citizens often migrate to?
Australia
The bulk of Kiwis choosing to leave New Zealand opt to hop across the ditch to Australia, with its promises of higher wages, more jobs, and better standards of living.
How are those promises looking?
- Unemployment – Australia’s unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.1% in April, above expectations of 3.9%.
- Job vacancies – The latest figures from February 2024 show total job vacancies dropped by 6.1% from November 2023.
- Inflation – Australia’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.6% over the year to March 2024. The rate didn’t slow as much as expected, due to increased rent and education costs.
- Rent prices – CoreLogic’s most recent figures show rents are at a record high in Australia, with the median weekly rent increasing 8.5% year-on-year to $627.
- GDP – Australia’s economy grew by 0.2% in the December quarter.
The United Kingdom
The UK has traditionally been another popular destination for New Zealand citizens to relocate to.
Here’s what their economic picture is currently looking like.
- Unemployment – The number of unemployed in the UK rose from 3.8% in the last quarter of 2023 to 4.3% in the first quarter of this year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
- Job vacancies – The estimated number of job vacancies for February to April fell 2.8%. ONS said job vacancies fell in 13 of the 18 industry sectors it measures.
- Inflation – The UK’s inflation rate has dropped dramatically since an eye-watering peak of 11.1% in October 2022. In the year to March 2024, inflation sat at 3.2%. That figure is expected to drop further still.
- Rent prices - Average monthly rent prices have been climbing across the UK, according to ONS – by 9.1% in England, 9% in Wales, 10.5% in Scotland, and 10.1% in Northern Ireland.
- GDP – ONS figures show the UK’s GDP was estimated to have increased by 0.6% in the first quarter of 2024. This follows two consecutive quarterly declines.
The United States
How are things looking in the land of the free and the home of the brave?
- Unemployment – Bureau of Labor statistics show the United States’ unemployment rate held mostly steady at 3.9% in April. Its unemployment rate has sat between 3.7% and 3.9% since August last year.
- Inflation – The Labor Department reported the CPI rose 3.4% in April, down from 3.5% the month before. It said it’s the latest indication that inflation was trending in the right direction for the US.
- GDP - Real GDP increased at an annual rate of 1.6% in the first quarter of 2024, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Canada
The Canadian labour market has been showing signs of stress. How are other economic indicators holding up?
- Unemployment – Canada’s unemployment rate is sitting at 6.1%, according to Statistics Canada’s latest Labour Force Survey. It says unemployment rates were higher across all major demographics when compared with 12 months ago.
- Inflation – The CPI rose 2.9% on a year-on-year basis in March. This is up slightly from the 2.8% recorded in February. That increase has been blamed on rising fuel prices.
- Rent prices – Canada’s average monthly rental price jumped 10.5% in February, according to Rentals.ca. It said Alberta was the province with the fastest-growing rents – up 20% year-on-year.
- GDP – Canada’s real GDP grew 0.2% in the last quarter of 2023, following a 0.1% decrease in the previous quarter.
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