Net migration reaches new annual record in June, swelled by Indian, Chinese students

New Zealand annual net migration rose to a new record in June as arrivals continued to be bolstered by Chinese and Indian students, while fewer locals departed for Australia.

The country added a net 58,300 migrants in the year ended June 30, ahead of the 38,300 gain a year earlier in the 11th month where the annual figure has racked up a new record, according to Statistics New Zealand. (See graph below) Migrant arrivals climbed 15 percent to 115,700 in the year, while departures fell 8.1 percent to 57,400.

New Zealand's annual net migration already beat the Treasury's forecast peak of 56,600, and is closing in on the 60,000 figure used for the basis of the Budget's economic upside scenario. Under that framework, the Treasury expected faster growth over the next two years, as new migrants would fuel consumer spending, before putting more pressure on the housing market.

Inbound migration has been fuelled by a rising number of student visas, which rose 43 percent in the year to 25,800, of which 10,100 were from India and 4,900 from China. India was the third-biggest source for long-term arrivals with 13,300 in the year, a 61 percent increase from 2014, while China was the fourth largest with 10,300, up 16 percent on the year. Australian arrivals rose 9.2 percent to 24,100, while UK arrivals fell 2.3 percent to 13,500.

On a monthly basis, New Zealand reported a seasonally adjusted net inflow of 4,800 migrants.

Separately, short-term visitor arrivals rose 9 percent to 177,000 in June from the same month a year earlier, led by gains in Australian, Chinese, and American visitors who accounted for 61 percent of all arrivals in the month. Short-term arrivals rose 7.4 percent to 2.99 million in the year.

New Zealand tourism was getting a boost with the recent decline in the kiwi dollar, which makes it more affordable for foreigners to travel to remote places, and was bolstered by events such as the Cricket World Cup earlier this year and the more recent Under-20 Fifa World Cup.

Bank of New Zealand economists yesterday noted the booming numbers of short-term visitor arrivals, and predicted the June month would rise by between 5 percent and 10 percent.

(BusinessDesk)