Today: 26 April 2025
9 December 2020
1 min read

NZ’s tourism faces worst crisis amid pandemic

Tourism, as New Zealand’s biggest export industry contributing 20.4 per cent of total exports, directly employed 8.4 per cent of the New Zealand workforce before Covid-19..reports Asian Lite News

New Zealand’s key tourism destinations — Queenstown, Rotorua and Auckland had some of the largest drops in filled jobs in the September 2020 quarter in the wake of Covid-19, the statistics department Stats NZ said on Wednesday.

Tourism, as New Zealand’s biggest export industry contributing 20.4 per cent of total exports, directly employed 8.4 per cent of the New Zealand workforce before Covid-19, Xinhua reported.

Tourism generates a direct annual contribution to GDP of 16.2 billion New Zealand dollars (11.4 billion US dollars), or 5.8 per cent, and a further indirect contribution of 11.2 billion New Zealand dollars (7.9 billion US dollars), another 4 per cent of New Zealand’s total GDP, according to Stats NZ.

Queenstown-Lakes district had 1,155 fewer jobs in the September 2020 quarter than in the same period last year – a 5.3 per cent decrease.

Jobs filled in Rotorua district decreased by 1.1 per cent (329 jobs). Auckland experienced Level 3 lockdown restrictions in August and had a 0.4 per cent fall (3,186 jobs) in the September 2020 quarter.

Filled jobs also fell by 2.9 per cent (108 jobs) in Waitomo district and by 2.7 per cent (142 jobs) in Ruapehu district.

“The falls in these popular tourist destinations coincided with the wage subsidies finishing and COVID-19 border restrictions interrupting international tourism,” Stats NZ’s business insights manager Sue Chapman said.

Stats NZ said earlier that border restrictions are cutting a swathe through international visitor arrivals which showed a record drop of 1.4 million from April to September 2020.

Overseas visitor arrivals were down by 253,200 to 8,600 in September 2020, compared with September 2019. The biggest changes were in arrivals from Australia (down 128,500) and China (down 27,300).

“These decreases are part of an overall weaker picture for both filled jobs and gross earnings across a number of industries, since the onset of Covid-19,” Chapman said.

Also read:New Zealand to step up security measures

Previous Story

Etihad launches aircraft carbon offset programme

Next Story

UAE, UN to Host World Space Forum

Latest from -Top News

Sikh Community Pays Rich Tributes to Pope 

UAE Sikh community mourns Pope Francis, honoring him as a global symbol of faith and compassion…reports Asian Lite News The Sikh community of the United Arab Emirates extends heartfelt condolences on the

India Praises UAE’s Global AI Benchmark 

Kaustubh Dhavse, Maharashtra CM’s OSD, hailed the UAE’s AI model as a global benchmark driving digital innovation and attracting global talent…reports Asia Lite News Kaustubh Dhavse, Joint Secretary and Officer on Special

Azad Moopen Pays Tribute to Pope Francis 

Dr. Moopen also noted Pope Francis’ historic 2019 visit to the UAE, a landmark moment in fostering interfaith dialogue and tolerance…reports Asian Lite News Dr. Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman of Aster DM
Go toTop