New Zealand household saving fell to $653 million in the March 2023 quarter, an $874 million decline from the December 2022 quarter’s $1.5 billion, according to quarterly figures released by Stats NZ today.
“New Zealand households saved less, as their spending increased at a faster rate than their disposable income,” national accounts institutional sectors senior manager Paul Pascoe said.
| Quarter | Change in net disposable income | Change in final consumption expenditure |
| Mar-17 | 4.2 | 2.6 |
| Jun-17 | -1.4 | 0.9 |
| Sep-17 | 2.1 | 1.2 |
| Dec-17 | 3.5 | 1.8 |
| Mar-18 | 0.7 | 1.0 |
| Jun-18 | 2.0 | 1.9 |
| Sep-18 | 2.4 | 1.7 |
| Dec-18 | 0.6 | 1.5 |
| Mar-19 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| Jun-19 | 3.4 | 1.4 |
| Sep-19 | 1.5 | 1.3 |
| Dec-19 | 1.6 | 1.0 |
| Mar-20 | 1.1 | -0.2 |
| Jun-20 | 0.4 | -11.7 |
| Sep-20 | 3.7 | 14.3 |
| Dec-20 | 0.9 | 2.3 |
| Mar-21 | 6.3 | 6.5 |
| Jun-21 | -4.9 | 0.4 |
| Sep-21 | 2.4 | -5.8 |
| Dec-21 | 1.5 | 6.6 |
| Mar-22 | 2.6 | 6.7 |
| Jun-22 | 1.3 | -1.3 |
| Sep-22 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
| Dec-22 | 1.8 | 1.8 |
| Mar-23 | 2.3 | 3.9 |
Household spending increased by 3.9 percent, driven primarily by increases in spending on services such as international travel .
Household net disposable income rose 2.3 percent to $58.2 billion. This increase was driven by wages and salaries (up 3.7 percent), and interest received (up 18.4 percent). Offsetting these were an increase in interest payable (15.1 percent) and a decrease in dividends receivable (down 19.4 percent).
Household net disposable income is the amount of money a household has once all income such as wages, interest, and child support, and income payable such as taxes have been accounted for. It represents the money available for a household to save, spend, or invest in housing.
The household saving ratio, which compares household saving to net disposable income, fell to 1.1 percent from 2.7 percent in the December 2022 quarter.
