- Jane Turner, ASB senior economist
New Zealand's trade deficit unexpectedly widened in September as dairy exports dropped, whereas imports remained stronger than predicted. According to Statistics New Zealand, the trade shortfall rose to $1.22 billion in September, compared with $1.08 a month earlier and economists' consensus forecast of the $825 million deficit. Exports climbed 2% year-on-year to $3.7 billion, driven by a 33% surge in meat products. At the same time, dairy exports continued to decline, plunging 22% over the same period. Whole-milk powder, the country's top export earner, plummeted 32% last month compared with September 2014. Meanwhile, imports dropped 1.3% to $4.91 billion on an annualized basis. Imports of capital goods dipped 17% with transport equipment down 55%, led by a fall in aircraft imports. However, underlying imports remained strong. Excluding large capital items, September imports surge 8.1% to a record.
The New Zealand Dollar dipped as low as $0.6738 versus the US namesake after the data from $0.6785 before the release of the report, but rebounded to around $0.6776.
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