After a settled start to the weekend, the weather began to deteriorate yesterday as a front over the Tasman spread warm moist air over central and northern New Zealand.

This front moves onto the North Island this afternoon, bringing widespread rain and strong winds then stalling over Waikato tonight.

The South Island is affected by strong westerlies, with periods of rain, especially in the west.

The front continues north tomorrow and weakens, stalling over Northland in the evening and bringing a scattering of rain.

Westerlies prevail over the South Island and lower North Island, with showers affecting mainly western areas and the deep south, and easing through the day.

'On Wednesday, the front retains a weak presence over Northland, while a ridge of high pressure spreads over the rest of the country,” says MetService Meteorologist Ciaran Doolin.

'It should be a sunny day for much of the country, apart from isolated showers affecting the West Coast and far south of the South Island.”

During Thursday and Friday, the front over Northland is expected to become active again and the associated moisture gradually sinks south over the North Island, spreading rain to most places.

'There may be some heavy falls associated with this. However, there is still some uncertainty regarding the location of the heaviest falls, so keep an eye on the forecasts as the week progresses.

'The weather should remain mostly fine over the South Island and lower North Island during this time.”