A record year for visitors

Overseas visitor arrivals reached a record high of 1.817 million in the year to January.

The annual figure - the first time the 1.8 million level has been breached - was a rise of 197,000, or 12 per cent on the same period a year ago, Statistics New Zealand said yesterday.

Visitor arrivals for the year to January increased by 88 per cent, or 851,000 visitors, compared with a decade ago.

Taking the shine off the increase in visitor arrivals, permanent and long-term departures continued to mount during the month, exceeding arrivals by 1900, compared with a net outflow of 1440 for the previous January.

Australia remained the most popular destination for permanent and long-term migrants, a net outflow of 4940 during the month, 1080 more than January last year.

In the year to January, 11,780 residents left the country on a permanent or long-term basis, 2320 more than a year ago.

Overseas visitors totalled 197,760 in January, up 17 per cent on the same month a year earlier.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, visitor arrivals increased by less than 1 per cent between December 2000 and last January, compared with a rise of 4 per cent between November and December last year.

More visitors came from Asia, Europe and Australia, but fewer from the Americas.

- NZPA