Current account deficit widens

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New Zealand's current account deficit widened in the third quarter as profits earned by overseas-owned New Zealand companies increased.

The seasonally adjusted deficit widened to $3.628 billion in the three months ended September, from $3.508 billion in the June quarter, Statistics New Zealand said. The bigger income deficit was partly offset by higher inflows of tax received from non-residents, the government agency said.

The current account deficit for the year ended September was $14.2 billion, or 8.3 per cent of gross domestic product, due mainly to a rise in earnings from foreign investment in New Zealand. The deficit in the year ended June was $13.7 billion, or 8.1 per cent of gross domestic product.