New Zealand’s economy has entered a technical recession after posting two consecutive quarters of negative growth.
The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell 0.1% in this year’s first quarter, according to government data. That follows an economic decline of 0.7% in the fourth quarter of 2022.
New Zealand’s economy has slowed considerably as the nation’s central bank undertook one of the world’s most aggressive interest rate increase cycles.
In May, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised its benchmark interest rate to a 14-year high of 5.5%.
News that New Zealand has entered a recession comes a week after Europe also entered a technical recession, raising concerns that the global economy is slowing rapidly.
The New Zealand dollar fell 0.23% against the U.S. dollar on news that its economy has entered a recession.
