Central bank governor Alan Bollard said Monday that though the economy of New Zealand, which had an adverse hit from the global crisis, is getting better; the progress of the upturn is unsure.

A meeting was organized by Bollard with central bank chiefs from around the world in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in the US this month, where he expressed that the world is balanced for an upturn.

Bollard told Radio New Zealand: "Now we can see the turning point, we can see how bad it gets, we can see the bottom of the abyss and we can see out the other side." He explained, "There was generally a broad feeling of relief, but there's a long way to go yet."

Since the beginning of last year, New Zealand had already been in the grip of recession; and the impact of the global financial crisis diminished hopes of an early recovery.

Despite the contraction of the country's economy for five consecutive quarters, Bollard saw clear signs of an upturn.

He expressed, "The New Zealand economy is recovering, and for us it's not so much just the size of the recovery, it's the quality we will be concerned about."