WELLINGTON, Oct 27 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Imports, especially of fuel and cars, fell sharply, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, while exports held up, leading to a 1.7-billion NZ dollar (1.13-billion U.S. dollar) annual goods trade surplus, in the financial year ending Sept, 2020, New Zealand’s statistics agency, Stats NZ, said today.
Imports fell by 5.9 billion NZ dollars (3.9 billion U.S. dollars) in the year, it said in a statement. A similar large fall in trade occurred during the global financial crisis more than a decade ago, when both imports and exports dropped. This year, exports have held up well, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
The value of dairy product exports in Sept, 2020, fell from the same month of the previous year, according to it. The fall was price-led, as the overall quantity of dairy products exported rose over the same period, said the agency.
“New Zealand exported a greater volume of dairy products in Sept, 2020, than in the same month last year, but received less in return,” senior insights analyst, Nicholas Cox, said.– NNN-AGENCIES
