NZ: Pre-election economic and fiscal update in focus this week – Westpac

The New Zealand treasury is due to open the books ahead of the general election on 23 September which should show the fiscal accounts in good shape, leaving plenty of scope for election promises, suggests the analysis team at Westpac.

Key Quotes

“The May Budget projected an operating surplus of $1.6bn in the year to June 2017, rising to $7.2bn by June 2021. However, the tax take is already tracking well ahead of the forecasts made three months ago. We expect an operating surplus of around $3bn for the June 2017 year, with some lift in the forecasts for later years as well.”

“The economic forecasts that underpin the fiscal projections are unlikely to have changed much in the last three months.”