The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand recently released New Zealand's observation report on China's economy and trade, which shows that China is still New Zealand's largest trading partner. In the first quarter of 2024, New Zealand exported S $5.34 billion worth of goods and services to China, accounting for 21.6 per cent of New Zealand's total exports in the period.

In the first four months of 2024, New Zealand's fruit exports to China totaled S $378 million, a year-on-year increase of 53%.

The growth was mainly due to the successful delivery of kiwifruit by Zespri to the Chinese market. New Zealand growers say kiwi yields are now greater and of higher quality after two challenging seasons. With the majority of kiwifruit sold to the Chinese market, kiwifruit exports to China are expected to continue to perform strongly in the coming months.

New Zealand apples and pears are also of excellent quality this season and are expected to command higher prices in overseas markets, including China. Apple orchards are recovering from the effects of the February 2023 hurricane and exports will be reflected in the later export figures due to the late harvest of Envy apples.