New Zealand’s population growth is slowing, suggesting that weaker consumer spending and a soft housing market will continue to weigh on the economy.
The population climbed 1.6% to 4.92 million as at June 30, Statistics New Zealand said Thursday in Wellington, the smallest annual increase since 2014. Previous gains were also revised lower after a change to the collection of immigration data. The statistics agency said the population grew by 398,900 in the five years through June 2018, some 44,500 less than previously reported.
