NZ economy seen growing 3% this year amid global uncertainty: forecast

Wellington

THE New Zealand economy will grow by about 3 per cent this year, in spite of slowing demand from its main export markets of China and Australia, an independent economic think-tank forecast on Tuesday.

The economy was in relative calm, against a backdrop of increasing global uncertainty, according to a quarterly forecast from the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER).

Domestic demand would be strong, but slowing growth in China and Australia would drag on exports, while dry conditions would dent production in the pillar agriculture sector, which has already been…