Foreign visitor numbers for the month of September exhibited an important uptick, even as a decline in the net migration loss exhibiting more people deciding to stay in New Zealand. This is in agreement with migration patterns between 2002 and the beginning of the pandemic, where New Zealand witnessed a yearly net loss of New Zealand citizens and a yearly net gain of non-New Zealand citizens.
Stuart Nash said that this is good news for the power of the New Zealand economy with the tourism sector remaining an important provider. Before COVID-19, tourism was the largest export industry of New Zealand, fetching $40.9 billion to the country. Tourism also made a noteworthy positive influence on regional economies supporting employment by directly employing 8.4 percent of the New Zealand workers.
