Alarm bells for smaller regions - as population growth fizzles out

Provisional Stats NZ figures show Canterbury topped annual growth to June on 1.1 percent - closely followed by Auckland at one-percent.

Nelson and Marlborough's populations dropped 0.3-percent.

Massey University sociologist Paul Spoonley says most growth will be in bigger cities like Auckland, in future.

He says populations could keep declining in regions like Nelson, Marlborough, Gisborne and Hawke's Bay.