Economy

Although Palmerston North has 1.9% of the population of New Zealand, 2.5% of the nation's employees work in the city. The important sectors are tertiary education, research and central government (Defence force).
At the 2013 census, the largest employment industries for Palmerston North residents were health care and social assistance (4,686 people, 13.0%), education and training (4,473 people, 12.4%), retail trade (4,062 people, 11.2%), public administration and safety (3,636 people, 10.1%), and manufacturing (2,703 people, 7.5%).

The tertiary education sector provides NZ$500 million a year to the local economy and the education sector accounted for 11.3% of the Palmerston North workforce in February 2006.
Palmerston North has economic strengths in research, especially in the bio-industry, defence, distribution and smart business sectors.
The city is home to more than 70 major educational and research institutions, including New Zealand's fastest expanding university, Massey University, the Massey University Sport and Recreation Institute at the Massey University campus, Turitea; Universal College of Learning (UCOL) and Linton Army Camp.