WELLINGTON, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Construction data in New Zealand's greater Christchurch, where three major earthquakes occurred over the past seven years, indicated building activity was still going strong, Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner said on Sunday.
Statistics on residential and non-residential building activity, since the earthquakes and the Canterbury Public Sector Rebuild program, showed that the value of non-residential consents issued in the March 2017 quarter was 251 million NZ dollars (182.7 million U.S. dollars), compared with 180 million NZ dollars (131 million U.S. dollars) in the same quarter in 2016.
The value of residential consents was similar, about 400 million NZ dollars (291 million U.S. dollars), to this time last year, the data showed.
The value of building activity in Canterbury in the March 2017 quarter was in excess of 1 billion NZ dollars (728 million U.S. dollars).
"Within this is the Canterbury Public Sector Rebuild program, which is almost halfway through. This is a stunning achievement given the magnitude of the program," Wagner said in a release.
"Overall, the level of construction activity isn't quite what it was two years ago when earthquake-related building consents were at their peak, but the numbers are still steady," Wagner said.
Continued development in the central city and wider Christchurch area means economic growth and, importantly, jobs, she said.
Employment in Canterbury's construction sector was 12.8 percent in March 2017, compared with 9.6 percent nationally, Wagner said, adding that since the March 2010 quarter, the sector has increased by 88.3 percent or 20,400 employees.
