A Copula-Based Joint Deficit Index for the Analysis of Droughts in New Zealand

The analysis of drought, in an area where agriculture is one of the largest sectors of the tradable economy, is particularly important for the significant ecological, social, and economic impacts of drought events. Moreover, current global-level assessments suggest that droughts are expected to both increase and decrease, depending upon geographic location, following future climate change. Within this context, in this study, drought has been analyzed in New Zealand, which, based on the latest climate and impact modeling, can expect more droughts in the future in some locations. In particular, an assessment of meteorological droughts in New Zealand has been conducted based on monthly precipitation data from 33 rain gauge stations in the period 1951 to 2012