Current account deficit $4.6 billion for the December 2025 quarter – news story
18 March 2026
New Zealand’s seasonally adjusted current account balance widened by $857 million to a deficit of $4.6 billion in the December 2025 quarter, according to figures released by Stats NZ today.
“The widening of the primary income deficit (by $664 million), and the goods deficit (by $321 million), were the main contributors to the current account deficit,” international accounts spokesperson Viki Ward said.
The services balance was a surplus of $122 million, the third surplus since the March 2020 quarter.
Primary income deficit widens
In the December 2025 quarter, the primary income deficit was $3.7 billion.
New Zealand’s investors earnings fell $336 million in the December 2025 quarter, when compared with the September 2025 quarter, while foreign investors earnings increased by $349 million.
The decrease in New Zealanders’ earnings from their overseas investments this quarter was mainly due to a fall in dividends earned, while foreign investors earned more profits from the ownership of shares in New Zealand businesses.