Indeed, labour costs are the factor most likely to cause price changes  1  See McDermott, J (2015), “The dragon slain? Near-zero inflation in New Zealand”, Assistant Governor and Chief Economist, Reserve Bank of New Zealand, speech delivered to the Waikato Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Waikato branch of the Institute of Directors, Hamilton, 23 April.
On the other hand, a pickup in private consumption has paused due to increased downward pressure stemming from the spread of the Omicron variant since the beginning of the year.