Dairy and travel still our largest export earners – Media release
New Zealand earned $2.3 billion more from exports than we spent on imports during the year ended June 2015, Statistics
New Zealand said today.
In the year to June 2015, total exports of goods and services were $67.5 billion, while total imports were $65.1
billion.
Dairy remains New Zealand's largest export commodity, earning $12.0 billion in the June 2015 year. However, this was
down from $15.8 billion in the June 2014 year. Spending by international visitors to New Zealand (travel exports)
increased $2.4 billion, reaching $11.7 billion in the June 2015 year.
"Dairy and travel are New Zealand's biggest export earners," international statistics senior manager Jason Attewell
said. "A fall in dairy exports to China, combined with the increase in expenditure by overseas visitors to New Zealand,
has narrowed the gap between the two."
Over one-third of total spending by international visitors in New Zealand was by visitors from Australia ($2.3 billion)
and the European Union ($2.1 billion) in the June 2015 year. The $2.3 billion spent by visitors from Australia was the
highest since the June 2010 year.
For the June 2015 year, New Zealand imported more from the European Union than we exported, resulting in a $3.4 billion
trade deficit. Collectively, the EU was our largest source of imports as we purchased $8.6 billion of goods and $2.9
billion of services from there.
Cars from Japan ($1.9 billion) and the EU ($1.8 billion) remain our two largest imports by country.
See our interactive map, New Zealand's Goods and Services Trade, for more information.
ENDS