The economic downturn has started to affect tourism in New Zealand with visitor numbers from China down 28.5 % in August compared to the same period last year.
Whilst some of this may be attributed to the Olympic games it's worth noting that over the last 3 months visits were down 21.7%.
Much of the decrease has been attributed to the high costs of travel and restricted airline capacity. Over $7 million was invested recently in a marketing campaign aimed at China, specifically Shanghai.
But it's not just the Chinese visitors staying away, figures from the USA and Europe have also declined contributing to an overall decrease of 1.4% for August compared to the same month last year.
Tourism is a major sector of the NZ economy, contributing 5.1% of the GDP. The total tourist expenditure in the country was estimated to be $20.1 billion in the year to March 2007, of which $11.3 billion was domestic.
5.8% of the total number of people employed in the country work in tourism.
References:
National Business Review, Tues 23 Sept
NZ Government Stats
Do NOT believe the newspapers when they give cheery news about sales of these miserable overpriced drafty mouldy shacks they call "houses" being "back up". From a mortgage auctions website:
ReplyDeleteMortgagee Sales now account for 4% of all house sales. 1 in 25 houses selling on the market now are mortgagee sales. Mortgagee sales and mortgagee auctions have risen 100% in Northland from May 2008 to May 2009, In Auckland during the same period, they rose 211% and in Wellington 1000%
And on Zoodle, check out the last bar on this bar graph:
http://www.zoodle.co.nz/cms/blog/mortgagee-sales-close-out-2009-at-record-levels.html
Mortgagee sales close out 2009 at record levels
"Total mortgagee sales for 2009 reached a new record level with 3,024 registered sale transactions where the sale was a mortgagee sale. This annual total was more than 3 times the number of sales in 2008 and more than double the highest prior year (2002)."
This is a crisis. And as usual, the Kiwis have their fingers in their ears and eyes closed, ignoring the elephant in the room, hoping it will lumber away all on its own.
The elephant may be deceased and destined for a pauper's grave.
ReplyDeleteHouse prices are set to slide:
"HOUSE PRICES are set to fall as the property market heads into what could be a winter of discontent for homeowners.
A flood of properties being listed for sale in February has prompted warnings that it could swamp the market and bring an end to the resurgence in prices which occurred last year.
Alistair Helm, the chief executive of property website realestate.co.nz, said 15,129 homes were listed for sale on the website in February, a massive 47% increase on January's listings.
Helm said there was usually a listing increase in February, but last month's surge was "exceptional"."
It makes us question how many of the February sales were by mortgagees, we also suspect that many of them will have been investment properties being unloaded onto the market.
See http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/3414363/House-prices-set-to-slide
ReplyDeleteThere are "for sale" signs ALL over the place. You wouldn't believe how many. Desperation all over the place too. Income shriveling, migrants packing it in and leaving. The newspapers understate the truth.
ReplyDelete