According to the indicators that we monitor Whanganui’s economy continues to trend positive.
New Zealand Economy
(Top)
Executive Summary
- Key economic data releases in July point to stronger economic growth in the June quarter than expected in the Budget Economic and Fiscal Update
- Business surveys point to robust economic activity, supported by stronger-than-expected export volumes and consumer spending
- Weak underlying price pressures despite domestic strength
- Global financial markets stabilised in July but the economic outlook is slightly weaker
Key economic data releases over the past month point to a stronger economy in the June quarter than expected in the Budget Economic and Fiscal Update. Business and consumer confidence are both running above their long-term averages, supported by external demand and consumer spending outturns that were above expectations. Continuing high net immigration (which looks to have peaked), a record number of visitor arrivals and rising export values in the quarter boosted economic activity, only partially offset by the slow recovery in dairy prices and the high NZD…
Read the full report here….
source: Treasury
NZ House sales (Top)
New record median sale prices in 4 regions as winter and lack of supply bite into sales volumes
- Four regions hit new record high median sale prices in July, with the national median sale price rising by $5,000 to $505,000, only $1,000 shy of the record median price reached in May 2016, according to the latest data released today by REINZ, source of the most recent, complete and accurate real estate data in New Zealand.
- The Waikato/Bay of Plenty region recorded its eighth record median sale price in nine months, reaching $450,000 (up 2.7% on June 2016), while the median price in Auckland reached $825,000 (up 0.5% on June 2016), Northland reached $376,000 (up 4.4% on June 2016) and Manawatu/Wanganui reached $265,000 (up 6.4% on June 2016).
- Inventory continues to fall rapidly nationwide, with a 33% decline in properties available for sale year-on-year and six regions seeing falls of greater than 40%. Wellington and Hawke’s Bay each have less than 10 weeks of supply available, with Waikato/Bay of Plenty at just on 10 weeks supply.
- At the same time, the number of residential dwelling sales for July 2016 was 7,299, a drop of 7% on June. Sales volumes also fell 10% compared to July 2015, with sales for Auckland falling just over 20% compared to July last year.
Read the Full report here…
source REINZ
NZ Retail Card Spend (Top)
The retail spend for July was still strong with the apparel sector still under pressure. Fuel sales have remained in negative territory which continues to significantly contribute to the current lower inflation rates we have been experiencing.
Top Categories were takeaways, bars cafes and accommodation which remains a consistent trend.
Source Marketview
NZ New Vehicle Sales (Top)
New Vehicle sales in New Zealand have continued to grow and in recent months the 12 month moving average growth has however continued to increased at a slower rate. In July 2015 a total of 7 071 new cars were sold and in July 2016 the figure was once again up to 7 701 a small increase of 0.1%.A new growth spurt has been experienced which is apparent in the 12 month moving average figure.
Source MIA
Local Economy
House sales have lead the way in the local economy with yet again good sales recorded once again the local indicators we monitor are still showing positive growth which is good for Whanganui.
Whanganui and Region House sales (Top)
Based on the reports coming in directly from our networks of property agents this sector is doing well and a situation where stock shortages are starting to occur is having a positive effect on building consent applications.
- Sales volumes rose 26% compared to July 2015, with sales rising 50% in Wanganui, 35% in Palmerston North and 10% in Levin. Compared to June sales volumes fell 3%, with sales rising 36% in Wanganui and 15% in Palmerston North, but falling across the rest of the region. On a seasonally adjusted basis sales across the region fell 3%.
- The median price across the region rose $35,500 (+16%) compared to July 2015 to reach a new record high. Prices rose 40% in Levin, 24% in Wanganui and 20% in Feilding. Compared to June the median price rose $16,000 (+6%), with prices rising 14% in Feilding, 11% in Wanganui and 9% in Levin. On a seasonally adjusted basis the median price increased 4% compared to June.
- The number of days to sell improved by one day in July, from 35 days in June to 34 days in July. The number of days to sell improved by 21 days compared to July 2015. Over the past 10 years the average number of days to sell during July for the region has been 52 days. There is currently 16 weeks of supply available across the region, a drop of 13 weeks over the past 12 months.
- REINZ spokesman Bryan Thomson noted: “The first home buyer market remains very active with quick sales and increasing number of multiple offers. The comparatively low levels of properties available for sale is also impacting on the rate of sales, with a slight increase in the number of listings well short of the underlying demand across the region.”
Source MREINZ
Whanganui Card Spend(Top)
The top category this month was Appliances with Bars cafes and restaurants still showing continued growth.
Top 3 sectors were
- Hardware and Homeware
- Bars cafes and restaurants
- Appliances
Hardware and Homeware have made a marked recovery over this reporting period
The bottom three sectors were
- Accommodation
- Apparel (still affected by changed market dynamics)
- Fuel (Lower pump prices- which in effect is a positive)
Card spend comparison by region monthly growth over previous year
Source Market View
Card spend comparison by region month growth over previous year
Card spend comparison by region monthly growth over previous year dollar value of goods purchased July 2016.
Source Market View
Whanganui once again had better year on year electronic card sales than most of the TLA’s in the Manawatu Whanganui Region and still in line with the New Zealand Spend. Currently the negative spend on fuel is also skewing these results as the price of fuel in Whanganui has been more competitive than New Zealand on Average.
Whanganui New Vehicle Sales (Top)
In July 2016 new vehicle sales were up by 6 vehicles sold in the previous year again with 70 new vehicles sold as opposed to 64 in the previous year maintaining the moving average growth rate in positive territory at 1.1% there are large fluctuations in sales from month to month due to a low base number however the overall trend is still positive.
Source MIA
Building Consents – Whanganui (Top)
In July there were 78 Building Consent applications. Based on a 12 month moving average we have again seen an improvement in number of consent applications with the value of consents indicating a stable recovery.
Source: Whanganui District Council
WHANGANUI HAS BIGGEST NZ MONTH BY MONTH TOURISM SPEND GROWTH
Whanganui is continuing its rise with local tourism results and topped the list of NZ regional tourism organisations for month to month regional tourism expenditure. Month to month growth for the last 12 months ending July 2016 in Whanganui shows a 31.6% increase for regional expenditure on tourism and this puts Whanganui firmly at the top of the list. The total expenditure for the year includes national and international visitors with 84% coming from other Kiwi’s visiting the district. The national rate for the same period is 4.1%.
Looking at the annual growth figures for regional tourism expenditure, Whanganui still features at the top ranking third with year to year growth of 10.3%. Lake Wanaka and Queenstown take the first two places with growth of 18.8% and 11.9% respectively.
While in terms of total dollar figures Whanganui is only a small portion of national tourism expenditure (0.4%) these figures show a significant shift with people spending more during their stay and staying longer.
Source: Tourism NZ
