In December, New Zealand recorded a merchandise trade deficit of NZ$323 million, according to data released by Statistics New Zealand. This figure greatly surpassed anticipations of a NZ$975 million deficit, representing a significant decrease from the revised November deficit of NZ$1.250 billion.
The nation witnessed an 8.7 percent annual decline in exports, which stood at NZ$5.94 billion, a slight decrease from the revised total of NZ$5.95 billion in the prior month. The total value of exports of milk powder, butter, and cheese fell by NZ$520 million, or 23 percent, to NZ$1.79 billion.
Concurrently, imports fell by 13 percent year on year to NZ$6.26 billion, which is a decrease from the revised total of NZ$7.20 billion from the preceding month. However, the nation's imports of petroleum and its products saw an increase, totaling NZ$999 million, a substantial rise of NZ$534 million, or 115 percent.
In the fourth quarter of 2023, exports saw a slight increase of NZ$270 million or 1.6 percent, thus reversing the 8.5 percent fall seen in the third quarter of the same year. Goods imports decreased by NZ$521 million, or 2.6 percent, in line with the 4.0 percent fall noted in the previous quarter. This resulted in a quarterly trade deficit of NZ$2.6 billion.
For the entirety of 2023, the worth of annual goods exports amounted to NZ$68.7 billion, marking a decrease of NZ$3.3 billion from the previous year. Imports were valued at NZ$82.3 billion, a decrease of NZ$4.3 billion from the previous year. Thus, the annual trade deficit stood at NZ$13.6 billion for the year.
