A westerly quarter airflow lies over New Zealand on Thursday, moving around a large high centred to the northwest of the North Island. Meanwhile a front pushes northwards over the South Island during the day, weakening as it moves north.

Cloudy areas for the western North Island on Thursday, especially western Waikato southwards. Sunnier conditions out east.

Heavy rain slowly pushes northwards along the South Island’s West Coast during the day, drier in the east with high cloud. Winds are gusty for much of the South Island during the day, perhaps strong at times for inland areas and through the Straits.

By Weather Analyst Aaron Wilkinson – WeatherWatch.co.nz