New Zealand posted a trade surplus of NZD 142m in June, falling well short of market expectations for NZD 1.02B. The softer balance came despite solid annual growth in both exports and imports. Goods exports rose 10% yoy to NZD 6.6B and imports surging 19% to NZD 6.5B.
Regionally, exports to the EU jumped 38% yoy, followed by gains to China (11% yoy) and Australia (16% yoy). However, exports to the US and Japan declined -8.8% yoy and -4.7% yoy respectively.
The strength in exports was not enough to offset the broader pressure from surging imports, particularly as US ( 21% yoy) and South Korean (40% yoy) shipments rose sharply. Imports from EU (0.8% yoy), Australia (6.8% yoy) and China (9.1% yoy) also grew.
