The Macroeconomic Stream

The Macroeconomic Stream offers the opportunity to focus on improving New Zealanders’ wellbeing through utilising macroeconomics and fiscal policy, modelling and research, and forecasting.

You will be at home in this stream if you have a genuine interest in the New Zealand economy, macroeconomics and fiscal policy. To apply for this stream you will either have:

• A 300+ level major in economics (this could be macroeconomics or microeconomics), OR
• Completed 200 level economics papers in addition to 300+ level in one of the following: Finance, Public Policy, Statistics or Maths.

Teams that sit within the Macroeconomic Stream include:

Macroeconomic and Fiscal Policy Team

Responsibilities include:

• Advising on monetary and fiscal policy frameworks
• Advising the Government on the stance and sustainability of fiscal policy
• Supporting the Minister of Finance in his statutory roles regarding the Reserve Bank’s monetary policy functions

Modelling and Research Team

Responsibilities include:

• Collaborating on applied analysis on macroeconomic and policy issues
• Producing fiscal projections and policy analysis
• Undertaking timeseries analysis and developing macroeconomic models for policy

Forecasting Team

Responsibilities include:

• Monitoring and quantitative analysis on international and domestic economic developments
• Producing the economic and fiscal forecasts and projections published in the Budget and regular Economic and Fiscal Updates, and the Long-Term Fiscal Statement.

For more information, read our graduate story below. 

Carlos, now an Analyst, Forecasting

Carlos: Graduate Analyst, Forecasting

What attracted me to the Treasury was the strong economics focus and it being at the heart of the public sector.

The Treasury is a great place to apply the knowledge gained from university and develop new skills. It is great to be able to understand how the economy is functioning and the initiatives the Government is thinking about implementing. Knowing that the contribution I make here is contributing to making a meaningful difference to the lives of all New Zealanders is just the cherry on top. 

I am part of the Forecasting team and my area of work relates to forecasting inflation, interest rates, and exchange rates. Actively monitoring and modelling developments in my sectors of the economy allows me to get a broad sense of where the economy might be going.

During the Forecasting round, we visit various businesses around the country to ask people on the ground what is happening with the economy, what challenges and successes have they had, and where do they think we will be in a few months. It’s a cool opportunity to test whether our forecasts are reflecting the reality experienced by New Zealanders.