Taupo District continuing to grow

Our population is growing, we're seeing more visitors coming here and the unemployment rate is dropping - that's just some of the great news to come out of the December quarter Taupo District Economic Monitor report.

Every three months Enterprise Great Lake Taupo commissions a report that looks at the current economic situation in our district and trends over the past year. The data comes from a range of organisations such as Statistics New Zealand, other government agencies and the banking sector.

Enterprise Great Lake Taupo chair Greg Stebbing said the most recent report reflected positively on the past year for our district.

"We've had some noticeable gains in our population which has grown by around 600 people the past year. Unsurprisingly, we've also seen growth in the number of new residential buildings and existing building alterations."

Greg said more visitors are coming here and people are also spending more in our district's stores.

"We've seen a gain in the number of visitors arriving in the Taupo District and they're spending more than visitors have in the past. The even better news is that locals are also following this trend, which is always a positive economic indicator."

With the extra spending, the report showed employment around the district had grown by 3.9 per cent, with the unemployment rate dropping from 4.3 per cent to 4 per cent.

"This is all very positive for the Taupo District, and has led our GDP to grow around 2.8 per cent," Greg said. "Economic development is an important part of council's strategy, so it's pleasing to see Taupo is keeping up with the rest of New Zealand, and seeing growth above the national average as well."

To read the report in more detail, visit the Enterprise Great Lake Taupo website.

TAUPO DISTRICT BY THE NUMBERS

• Estimated population 36,200
• Estimated number of households 14,500
• Projected population growth over next 10 years 2.3%