National Accounts: December 2024 Quarter

We have developed experimental quarterly estimates for institutional sector accounts and balance sheets to provide more timely data on New Zealand's economy. We have published these experimental estimates on a quarterly basis since the first release for the March 2021 quarter.

The quarterly income measure of gross domestic product (GDPI), along with total economy compensation of employees, gross operating surplus and gross mixed income, taxes on production and imports, and subsidies became official in the December 2023 quarter and were most recently published in Gross domestic product: December 2024 quarter on 20 March 2025.

These previously published measures are also included in table 1.1 (consolidated accounts of the nation, gross domestic product, and expenditure account) of the consolidated accounts tables in this release, in actual and seasonally adjusted terms. All other series in the consolidated accounts tables of this release remain as previously published.

Key facts

Quarterly income and outlay accounts

In the December 2024 quarter, compared with the September 2024 quarter (in seasonally adjusted terms):

• household saving increased $429 million to -$1.4 billion
• household net disposable income rose 1.5 percent ($892 million):
  • income of self-employed businesses (entrepreneurial income) received by households rose 6.5 percent ($642 million)
  • compensation of employees was little changed (down 0.1 percent)
  • interest received by households fell 4.7 percent ($184 million)
• household final consumption expenditure rose 0.8 percent ($463 million)
• non-financial business enterprises saving rose $2.1 billion to $2.8 billion
• interest received by financial business enterprises fell 5.5 percent ($857 million)
• interest paid by financial business enterprises fell 4.5 percent ($628 million).

Quarterly balance sheets

Quarterly balance sheet values are not seasonally adjusted.

In the December 2024 quarter, compared with the September 2024 quarter:

• household net worth was little changed (up $834 million):
  • currency and deposits rose $6.5 billion
  • insurance and pension assets rose $4.7 billion
  • land fell $10.5 billion
• non-financial business enterprises net worth decreased $3.5 billion
• central government net worth increased $2.6 billion (0.9 percent):
  • accounts receivable assets rose $3.7 billion (10.2 percent)
  • equity and investment fund share assets rose $2.7 billion (1.8 percent)
  • loan assets rose $2.5 billion (6.3 percent)
  • debt security liabilities rose $6.2 billion (3.3 percent).

Quarterly income and outlay accounts

Quarterly income and outlay account values are seasonally adjusted.

Household saving rises in December 2024 quarter

Household saving shows how much households are saving out of their current income (net disposable income) - that is, current income less current consumption.

Household saving rose $429 million to -$1.4 billion in the December 2024 quarter. The rise follows falls in the two preceding quarters:

• $456 million fall in the September 2024 quarter
• $881 million fall in the June 2024 quarter.

Household net disposable income increased 1.5 percent ($892 million) in the December 2024 quarter, while household spending (final consumption expenditure) increased 0.8 percent ($463 million).

The increase in net disposable income was driven by a rise in the income of self-employed businesses (entrepreneurial income), partly offset by a fall in interest received by households.

Total income payable was little changed, down 0.3 percent ($71 million). A fall in the interest paid by households (down 4.5 percent or $143 million) was largely offset by a rise in income tax paid by households (up 0.8 percent or $133 million).

Central government saving falls in December 2024 quarter

Central government saving fell $952 million to -$599 million in the December 2024 quarter, driven by a decrease in income receivable (down $789 million) and an increase in final consumption expenditure (up $97 million).

Income receivable decreased $789 million (2.1 percent) to $37.4 billion, led by falls in income tax received (down $722 million or 3.4 percent) and dividends received (down $134 million).

Income payable was little changed in the December 2024 quarter (up $42 million to $15.8 billion). A rise in social assistance benefits in cash (up $218 million or 2.0 percent) was partly offset by falls in miscellaneous current transfers (down $111 million) and subsidies payable (down $64 million).

Interest falls in the December 2024 quarter

Interest received by financial business enterprises fell 5.5 percent ($857 million) in the December 2024 quarter. Interest paid by financial business enterprises also fell, down 4.5 percent or $628 million.

These movements follow falls in both interest received and interest paid in the September 2024 quarter, consistent with recent falls in the official cash rate (OCR).

Interest payments fell $290 million (4.6 percent) in non-financial businesses enterprises in the December 2024 quarter, with interest received also decreasing $71 million (4.6 percent).

Households interest also declined in the December 2024 quarter, with interest received down 4.7 percent ($184 million) and interest paid down 4.5 percent ($143 million).

Household interest payments do not include interest paid on rental property mortgages, as rental properties are almost entirely included in the non-financial business enterprises sector. Instead, interest payments by landlords are indirectly captured in the household sector account as part of calculating entrepreneurial income.

In general, lower interest payments by landlords result in larger entrepreneurial income flows to the household sector.

Quarterly balance sheets

Note: quarterly balance sheet series are not seasonally adjusted.

Household net worth little changed

Household net worth, the value of all assets owned by households less the value of their liabilities, was little changed, up $834 million to $2,440 billion in the December 2024 quarter.

In the year ended December 2024, household net worth fell $4.2 billion (0.2 percent), which followed a rise of $36.7 billion (1.5 percent) in the year ended December 2023.

An increase in total assets ($4.3 billion) in the December 2024 quarter was partly offset by a rise in total financial liabilities ($3.4 billion).

Total financial assets rose $11.2 billion (0.7 percent) in the December 2024 quarter, following a rise of $2.4 billion in the September 2024 quarter.

The rise in total financial assets the December 2024 quarter was led by rises in currency and deposits (up $6.5 billion) and insurance and pension assets (up $4.7 billion).

Equity and investment fund share assets of households (household equity) was little changed in the December 2024 quarter - this asset class includes the value of rental properties less the associated mortgages held against them.

Total non-financial assets fell $6.9 billion (0.6 percent) in the December 2024 quarter, following falls of $1.2 billion in the September 2024 quarter and $8.2 billion in the June 2024 quarter.

For the household sector, the non-financial asset class translates to owner-occupied residential property. The fall in total non-financial assets in the December 2024 quarter was led by a fall in the value of land (down $10.5 billion or 1.5 percent), partly offset by a rise in the value of residential buildings (up $3.6 billion or 0.7 percent).

Total financial liabilities rose $3.4 billion (1.1 percent), driven by a rise in household residential mortgages, which comprise much of this total liability (around 90 percent).

More data

Use Infoshare to access national accounts time series.

Subject category: Economic indicators

Group: National accounts - SNA 2008

CSV files for download - the latest data from our information releases.

Definitions and metadata

Quarterly national accounts: (income, saving, assets, and liabilities) - data collection and methodology - DataInfo+ provides the data sources and general methodology used to produce these statistics.

Quarterly national accounts: (income, saving, assets, and liabilities) - concepts - DataInfo+ provides the definitions of terms used in this release.

Quarterly national accounts: (income, saving, assets, and liabilities): December 2024 quarter - changes and data updates - Datainfo+ has details of data updates for this release.

Technical enquiries

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Next release

National accounts (income, saving, assets, and liabilities): March 2025 quarter will be released on 3 July 2025.