Economic Outlook No 117 — Trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand
New Zealand: Economic Outlook No 117 — Trend employment rate, as a percentage of was 74.69 in 2026. ▲ Rising
Economic Outlook No 117 — Trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand, 1989–2026
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 74.69 for economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of in 2026. That is the highest value across all 38 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 7.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand peaked at 74.69 in 2026 and was at its lowest, 59.24, in 1993.
That places New Zealand 5th out of 30 countries with data for 2026, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 38 years of available data.
Economic Outlook No 117 — Trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 61.55 | — |
| 1990 | 60.72 | -1.4% |
| 1991 | 59.99 | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 59.46 | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 59.24 | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 59.36 | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 59.7 | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 60.21 | +0.8% |
| 1997 | 60.86 | +1.1% |
| 1998 | 61.67 | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 62.58 | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 63.44 | +1.4% |
| 2001 | 64.25 | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 65.01 | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 65.71 | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 66.39 | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 67.03 | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 67.57 | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 67.97 | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 68.22 | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 68.3 | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 68.33 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 68.34 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 68.34 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 68.42 | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 68.6 | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 68.93 | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 69.41 | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 70 | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 70.59 | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 71.15 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 71.73 | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 72.35 | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 73.01 | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 73.67 | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 74.13 | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 74.46 | +0.4% |
| 2026 | 74.69 | +0.3% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 74.69 is above the median for high income countries, which is 67.72, 1.1× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 61.55 | 61.55 | 61.55 | 1 |
| 1990s | 60.38 | 59.24 | 62.58 | 10 |
| 2000s | 66.39 | 63.44 | 68.3 | 10 |
| 2010s | 69.21 | 68.33 | 71.15 | 10 |
| 2020s | 73.43 | 71.73 | 74.69 | 7 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 2 Croatia 60.27 compare
- 2 Estonia 70.73 compare
- 2 Switzerland 78.94 compare
- 3 Japan 77.33 compare
- 3 Lithuania 69.5 compare
- 4 Iceland 75.44 compare
- 4 Slovenia 69.18 compare
- 5 Latvia 66.34 compare
- 6 Denmark 73.9 compare
- 6 Poland 60.69 compare
- 7 Germany 73.17 compare
- 7 Türkiye 51.72 compare
- 8 Bulgaria 72.9 compare
More economy & growth data for New Zealand
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.71 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.37 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 23.86 million BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0001 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 4.48 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 3.61 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 104.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0137 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 677.46 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 27.59 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand?
- Economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of in New Zealand was 74.69 in 2026, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 74.69 in 2026.
- What is the lowest economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 59.24 in 1993.
- How does New Zealand rank for economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of?
- New Zealand ranks 5th out of 30 countries with data for 2026.
- Is economic outlook no 117 — trend employment rate, as a percentage of rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Economic Outlook No 117 — Trend employment rate, as a percentage of population aged 15-74. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 38 observations, free to reuse under OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required).
About this data
The OECD Economic Outlook presents the OECD’s analysis of the major global economic trends and prospects for the next two years. The Outlook puts forward a consistent set of projections for output, employment, government spending, prices and current balances based on a review of each member country and of the induced effect on each of them on international developments. OECD (2025), OECD Economic Outlook No 117 (Edition 2025/1) EO117 Database documentation EO117 Last historical points gdp inflation cpi population unemployment real gdp gdp per capita employment OECD Economic Outlook website: https://www.oecd.org/economic-outlook/ Contact : eco.outlook@oecd.org Keywords : Outlook, forecasts, forecast, GDP