The New Zealand economy has edged out of recession after contracting since the start of 2008, dpa cited official figures as releasing today. Economic activity, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP), rose fractionally by less than 0.1 per cent in the three months ending June 30, following five consecutive quarters of contraction, Statistics New Zealand reported. Finance minister Bill English warned that the growth was only marginally positive and could still be revised downward, but he said it showed the economy was "through the bottom of the trough and is stabilizing." He said that unemployment - "for most people the real measure of recession" - was expected to keep rising for some time yet. The recovery was largely fired by increased exports of lumber to China, which helped boost activity in the primary industries by 1.5 per cent in the June quarter, Statistics New Zealand said. Lumber and sales of dairy products led a 4.7-per-cent rise in export volumes, while the manufacturing and construction sectors continued to contract, by 1.3 per cent and 1.9 per cent respectively. "There is a lot of work to do if we are to have a strong recovery that leads to sustainable jobs and growth," English said.
