Increased volumes of gold kiwifruit and apples drove up shipments of the fruit which are the New Zealand's fourth-biggest export product, leading to a larger-than-expected trade surplus in April.
The trade surplus of $292 million in April was more than the $60 million expected in a Reuters poll of economists and wider than the $184 million reported a year earlier, Statistics New Zealand said. Exports rose 4 percent to $4.3 billion and imports were up 1.5 percent at $4.01 billion.
Sales of fruit rose 16 percent to $418 million in April from the same month a year earlier, led by a 53 percent jump in sales of gold kiwifruit as volumes climbed 29 percent, while apple exports rose 29 percent in value terms and 13 percent in volume. Annual fruit exports climbed 33 percent to $2.42 billion, the fastest pace among the country's 12 export commodities that achieve sales of at least $1 billion.
Today, Wednesday 25 May Kiwifruit marketing firm Zespri International reported record sales volumes for green and sungold kiwifruit varieties which helped deliver a 21 percent increase in revenue to $1.9 billion.
Today's data show the annual trade deficit was $3.66 billion, less than the $3.94 billion expected by economists, but a bigger shortfall than the $2.66 billion deficit in the same period a year earlier.
Source: nbr.co.nz
