At our recent Business Update Breakfast, we had the opportunity to present latest information on our district's growth, GDP, unemployment and industry to guests, including the Minister of Finance, Hon Grant Robertson.
Steve Tritt, Business Development Manger Waipa District Council, shared highlights from an Infometrics report commissioned by WDC.
Waipa is performing better than the rest of New Zealand:
• Waipa District: 4.2%pa GDP growth (YE Mar-18)
• New Zealand: 2.7%pa GDP growth;
and has consistently outperformed the Waikato average year on year.
Job growth is up, with the industries adding the most new jobs being construction (325); health care and social support (76); transport (69) and retail (66).
Steve acknowledged that the biggest issue facing industries in Waipa, and indeed much of the upper North Island, is the need to replace retiring workers.
Tania Witheford, CEO Cambridge Chamber, then followed up with some Cambridge specific statistics.
• Tertiary industries accounted for the largest proportion of GDP (41.0%) in Cambridge, which is higher than in the national economy (28.7%).
• Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services $59.6m – 12.2% share of total industry activity vs $1.6billion or 7.0% NZ wide
• Retail Trade $51.5m – 10.5% share of total industry activity in Cambridge vs 11.4 billion or 4.9% NZ wide
• 25.9% share of Cambridge GDP is Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Tania also took the opportunity to focus on some of the jewels in the Cambridge crown - Avantidrome, Mystery Creek Events Centre & Lake Karapiro - and the huge economic impact of associated events.
Hon Grant Robertson spoke about Budget 2018 and took part in discussions, mainly about the Provincial Growth Fund, and the potential for Waipa businesses to join together to take advantage of the opportunity for future growth.
Photo by Michael Jeans