NZ: May trade balance remained healthy at a $294m surplus - ANZ

Con Williams, Agri Economist at ANZ, notes that New Zealand’s May trade balance remained healthy at a $294m surplus and the annual deficit narrowed back to $3.6bn.

Key Quotes

“An unadjusted trade surplus of $294m was stronger than expected. Some downward revisions to the month before provided an offset, but the annual deficit managed to narrow back to $3.6bn. The big picture view remains the same with broad-based strength across most export sectors. China remains at the front of the queue.”

“In seasonally adjusted terms export values were largely unchanged in May. The best performers were meat, forestry and infant formula.”

“Imports were on the softer side largely due to a fall in the volatile crude/petroleum categories. In seasonally adjusted terms, imports dropped 4.3%.”