New Zealand economy hits worst level on weak second-quarter GDP

New Zealand’s economy was seen reaching its sharpest contraction on record in the second quarter. The decline came as the country’s effort to combat the coronavirus crisis ravaged business activity, official data showed on Thursday.

On a quarterly basis, the country’s gross domestic product recorded a seasonally adjusted 12.2% contraction. The reading came as the worst quarterly decline on record, placing just below the 12.8% drop predicted by economists in a Reuters survey. GDP dropped 12.4% year-on-year.

Following its 1.6% drop monitored in the first quarter, the recent figures indicate that New Zealand slid into its sharpest downturn since it saw two consecutive quarters of decline. However, economists forecast that New Zealand will recover faster than other economies.