Unemployment's risen even further

Latest data from Stats NZ shows the unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in the December quarter, up from 5.3 percent in the September quarter.

Unemployment shot up at the start of the pandemic, but plummeted to historic lows during 2021.

It's been steadily rising since then - particularly in our major cities.

Economists had been predicting today's number would come in at between 5.2 and 5.3 percent.