Golden years? The impacts of New Zealand's ageing on wages, interest rates, wealth and macroeconomy

March 1, 2013
New Zealand is ageing. The number of old people will increase three-fold and will soon comprise a very large segment of society. Ageing will shrink the labour supply relative to the size of the population and the existing supply of capital. That has implications for wages and interest rates. Increased longevity should also affect savings decisions and labour force participation. In this paper we model these changes to put some numbers on their impact. While the population is ageing gradually, the impact on the mix of labour and capital that fuels the economy will be profound.
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