The New Zealand Economy: An Introduction

by Ralph Lattimore, Shamubeel Eaqub

What drives economic growth in New Zealand? How has New Zealand been impacted by globalization and the financial crisis? What will shape future productivity and competitiveness? In this book, leading economists assemble key data to provide an analytical introduction to the contemporary New Zealand economy. Interpreting key economic indicators over time—gross domestic product and interest rates, population, employment and productivity levels, trade and investment, and government accounts—this examination focuses particularly on two issues: globalization and the rise of the Asian economies during the past 30 years, and the origins and continuing effects of the 2007–08 global financial crisis. Rich with local data and case studies, this is a clear and concise assessment of the current structure and performance of New Zealand’s economy from a historical and global perspective.

Genres: Economics

184 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2011

Reviews

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does what it sets out to do very well. It’s fairly basic, but a great introduction (or re-introduction for someone like me who hasn’t looked at an economics textbook for many years). The authors take care to explain the commentary they are making and don’t presume any knowledge of their reader, which makes for a pleasant reading experience, although the fluidity and clarity of the writing isn’t completely consistent - I breezed through some chapters but got bogged down in others, especially the capital markets one.

Also, while most of the commentary was straightforward and logical, some of it had obvious gaps for me. One example was during the immigration section where it was mentioned several times that increased migration increases GDP, but GDP per capita is never mentioned! Of COURSE more people will boost GDP. I want to know whether immigration makes us more productive. I also wanted a little bit more international context in many of the sections - it’s hard to understand the implications of some of the statistics without having an understanding of what other countries are doing.

Final complaint - it desperately needs updating! This edition was published in 2011, which is already a long time ago, but due to data availability means that many of the charts only extend to 2008 or 2009. There are so many contemporary issues that weren’t around in 2009 that the commentary became completely redundant at times.

So anyway - not perfect, and while it drags in places (I didn’t think either of the case studies added much), overall this is a fantastic overview for almost anyone interested in the basic settings and influencers of the New Zealand economy.

[Finn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yep, this was definitely an introduction to the New Zealand Economy. I read it in three hours and forty-five minutes, sitting in the Victoria University of Wellington Commerce Library, pausing only once to purchase a Golden Circle creaming soda from the vending machine for $2.80. Good stuff. 1984 eh, what a year?