Praneeta Mahajan
Hamilton, 12 January 2023
The New Year started with forecasts of a global recession, with many experts calling it a natural economic cycle.
Hamilton’s Ruakura Superhub development is proving to be an engine of economic growth as industrial consents hit record levels in the city.
The consenting figures were revealed in Hamilton City Council’s latest Quarterly Economic Update which provides a snapshot of the city’s economy during the September quarter.
Almost 78,000 Sq m of industrial floor area was consented during the three months to September, with the majority of the development centred in Ruakura.
Impressive results
Growth Funding and Analytics Manager Greg Carstens said that the figures coming out of Ruakura are impressive.
“Non-residential development is really important because it contributes to economic activity and employment. Broadly speaking, there are challenges around the availability of industrial land, such as ensuring the infrastructure is in place to enable development. To have an industrial area like Ruakura unlocked for development now is really valuable,” he said.
The quarterly update draws on information from Council’s data sources as well as organisations such as CoreLogic and Marketview.
Hamilton’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was $12.2 billion across the year to September 2022 – an increase of 1.7% on the previous year. At 4.4%, unemployment in the city remains at historic lows, providing challenges for employers in search of labour.
(Image by Build Media)
The RBNZ push
Despite this, Hamilton’s economy is showing signs of slowing down, which is understandable given the national and global context, Mr Carstens said.
In November, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) announced it intends to push the country into a recession to help ease inflation.
“If the Reserve Bank puts the brakes on the New Zealand economy by increasing interest rates, then we are going to see those effects in Hamilton. But the underlying strength of Hamilton’s economy is well established and the fundamentals are good,” Mr Carstens said.
Hamilton’s median house price fell an estimated 6% to $780,000 during the September quarter and the number of sales dropped 31%. Some unsold properties are being added to the rental market which will help keep city rents down.
“The Council has rich sources of data to draw on that, generally speaking, other organisations to which we do not have access. As a public organisation, I think there is an obligation to share this with our community. If you are thinking of buying or selling a house, or you are a business and you want to understand the job market better or learn where growth is occurring, then this quarterly economic update is really valuable,” Mr Carstens said.
Hamilton continues to have a strong pipeline of residential projects coming through.
The city remains fourth in New Zealand for consenting activity behind Auckland, Christchurch and Selwyn District.
Praneeta Mahajan is an Indian Newslink correspondent based in Hamilton.
