New Zealand Building Permits decline by 10.6% versus forecast 8.5% increase

• New Zealand Building Permits broadly missed expectations, printing at -10.6%.
• Markets expected an 8.5% rebound in new building approvals.
• NZ Building Permits down 24% YoY.

New Zealand Building Permits fell to a 15-month low of -10.6% in November, falling well short of the market forecast of an 8.5% increase.

New Zealand Building Permits are down 24% for the year ended in November, with the annualized number of new home consents continuing to decline from an all-time peak of 51,015 for the year ended May 2022. Annualized rolling Building Permits have fallen back to a multi-year low last seen in late 2020.

Market Reaction

The Kiwi (NZD) is rangebound in early Thursday action, trading into a tight range just above 0.6220 as markets gear up for Thursday’s trading session.

About New Zealand Building Permits

The Building Permits s.a. released by the Statistics New Zealand show the number of permits for new construction projects. It is considered as a leading indicator for the housing market. The more growing number of permits, the more positive (or bullish) for the NZD, while a low reading is seen as negative, or bearish.