FX.co ★ New Zealand’s Population Exodus Hits 13½-Year Peak

New Zealand is witnessing a significant rise in emigration, with citizen departures reaching their highest levels since February 2012. Recent figures from Statistics New Zealand indicate that 71,800 citizens left the country in the year ending June 2025, an increase from 67,500 in the prior year, and approaching the record high of 72,400 recorded in February 2012. Notably, over a third of these emigrants are under the age of 30. The surge in emigration coincides with worsening economic conditions and an increasing unemployment rate. Recent reports reveal that the jobless rate has escalated to 5.2% in the second quarter, marking the highest level since the third quarter of 2020. Simultaneously, the economy has contracted for the fourth consecutive year-on-year quarter, with GDP shrinking by 0.7% in the first quarter of 2025. However, on a quarterly basis, the economy saw a growth of 0.8% in Q1, following a 0.5% expansion in Q4 2024, after two consecutive quarters of decline. New Zealand's population has grown substantially, increasing from 3.1 million in 1979 to an estimated 5.3 million in 2025.