-- Data from New Zealand's labor market surveys is supportive of its forecast of a 0.8% rise in gross domestic product (GDP) for the March quarter, Westpac said Wednesday.
New Zealand's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate fell to 5.3% in the March quarter from 5.4% in the December 2025 quarter, data from Stats NZ showed the first decline since December 2021.
The bank said it and the market expected a flat outturn, but the result was in line with the New Zealand central bank's February monetary policy statement forecasts.
The fall in unemployment was due to the "unusual combination" of a rise in employment along with a fall in labor force participation.
The employment measures in the survey painted a fairly consistent picture of a lift in activity over the March quarter, recording a 0.8% rise in the total number of hours worked, a 0.7% rise in full-time equivalent workers and 0.6% gains in filled jobs and hours paid.
There is now a range of evidence that the economy was starting to regain some momentum in the early part of 2026, but the conflict in the Middle East has clouded the outlook for both activity and inflation pressures in the months ahead, the report noted.