New Zealand Building Permits Jump 5.1% In October

(RTTNews) - The total number of building permits issued in New Zealand was up a seasonally adjusted 5.1 percent on month in October, Statistics New Zealand said on Monday, standing at 2,349.

That follows the 5.7 percent monthly decline in September. On an annual basis, there were 197 more dwelling permits issued than a year earlier - up 9.2 percent.

Residential work was up NZ$21 million (2.4 percent on year) to NZ$898 million, while non-residential work was up NZ$22 million (4.9 percent) to NZ$479 million.

The actual value of building work consented in October was NZ$1.4 billion.

"Dwelling consents are well above the historical average in both Auckland and Canterbury," business indicators senior manager Neil Kelly said. "Auckland dwelling consents have continued to increase, while Canterbury has come down from the peak we saw last year."

Auckland consented 805 new dwellings in October 2015 (up 214 from October 2014). Two nearby regions also had large increases, with Waikato consenting 259 dwellings (up 65) and Bay of Plenty consenting 205 (up 85).

Meanwhile, Canterbury consented 489 new dwellings (down 197 from October 2014).

The national trend for the number of new dwellings consented is increasing, the bureau said, and is at its highest level since July 2004.