NZ Activity Index for July: +2% y/y (June was +0.6%)

New Zealand Treasury Activity Index (NZAC)

Activity in July is around 2% up on same month last year

• +0.6% in June (revised from -0.9%)

Treasury add:

• Most constituent indicators are above last year's levels
• main exceptions are the labour market indicators - which continue to dampen the index

More:

• COVID-19 has resurfaced in the New Zealand community, and Alert Levels 3 (in Auckland) and 2 (in the rest of NZ) have been reinstated.
• Weekly growth in income support numbers increased for the first time in six weeks.
• The NZ Activity Index shows economic activity was above 2019 levels in July, as retail card spending held up strongly. The RBNZ expanded the size and duration of its Large-Scale Asset Purchase programme, while business confidence slipped. Food prices rose on the back of higher vegetable prices.