NZ building consents sink 8.2% in January as Canterbury drops off

NZ building consents sink 8.2% in January as Canterbury drops off
Paul McBeth
By Paul McBeth Feb. 29 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand building consents fell last month as a drop-off in Canterbury construction intentions offset growth in other regions, although Auckland continued to lag behind the estimated level needed to match growth in housing demand. Seasonally adjusted consents across all dwellings dropped 8.2 percent to 2,245 in January, while housing consents sank 5.6 percent to 1,646, its steepest decline since August 2014, according to Statistics New Zealand. On an unadjusted basis, new housing consents were 13...