Councils had an operating surplus in the three months to March.
After adjusting for seasonal effects, Statistics New Zealand said their income exceeded expenditure by $91 million.
The agency said this operating surplus in the March quarter followed a surplus in the December quarter and was due to a rise in operating income and a fall in expenditure.
Operating income of $2.1 billion rose $36 million from the December 2012 quarter, while expenditure fell $47 million to $2 billion.
