Wellington or Te Whanganui a Tara is the capital of New Zealand, the third largest city by population and the center of the country’s second largest metropolitan area, the largest capital among the Polynesian countries.
Wellington Harbor is one of the main seaports in New Zealand and serves both domestic and international shipping. The port handles approximately 10.5 million tons of cargo annually, importing petroleum products, automobiles, minerals, and exporting meat, timber, dairy products, wool, and fruit. Many cruise ships also call at the port.
The government sector has long been a mainstay of the economy. Traditionally, Wellington’s central location meant that it was the location of many headquarters for companies in various sectors – particularly in finance, technology and heavy industry, with many headquarters moving to Auckland following economic deregulation and privatization.
Tourism, arts and culture, film and ICT are playing an increasingly important role in the city’s economy. Wellington’s average income is well above the New Zealand average and the highest of any New Zealand city. It has a much higher proportion of people with higher qualifications than the national average. The main companies headquartered in Wellington are:
- Centerport;
- Chorus Limited;
- Contact Energy;
- The Cooperative Bank;
- Datacom Group;
- Infratil;
- Kiwibank;
- Meridian Energy;
- New Zealand Post;
- New Zealand Exchange;
- Todd Corporation;
- Trade Me;
- Weta Digital;
- Wellington International Airport;
- Xero;
- Z Energy.
According to the 2013 census, the largest employment sectors for Wellington residents were professional, scientific and technical services (25,836 people), public administration and security (24,366 people), health and social assistance (17,466 people), education and training (16,550 people) and retail trade (16,203 people). In addition, Wellington is an important center of the New Zealand film and theater industry and is second only to Auckland in terms of the number of screen production facilities.