New Zealand unemployment is expected to continued rising for some time, said the country’s Finance Minister Bill English. “Lagging indicators such as unemployment are still worsening and we expect unemployment to keep rising for some time,” said the 48-year-old head of the treasury. He also added that the ability for an export-led recovery in the nation, now suffering from its seventh straight quarter of a contracting economy, will be curtailed by the surge in the country’s currency. Over the last six months the New Zealand Dollar rallied by 21.3% on a trade-weighted basis.