WELLINGTON (Reuters) -- New Zealand's economy missed forecasts for growth in the fourth quarter and instead shrank 0.6%, official data showed on Thursday, raising the chances of a recession and making further interest rate hikes less likely.
Gross domestic product (GDP) failed to meet analysts' expectations of a 0.2% contraction in the December quarter and was well below the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's (RBNZ) forecast of 0.7% growth. It was a reversal from revised growth of 1.7% seen in the third quarter.
