Trade barriers costing hort exporters $135m
Non-tariff trade measures (NTM) remain a problem for NZ exporters, according to Horticulture Export Authority (HEA) chief executive Simon Hegarty.
"Kiwifruit export values were at an all-time high in the months of May and June," business indicators senior manager Neil Kelly says. "It was also a good quarter for apple exporters."
When adjusted for seasonal effects, total wholesale trade sales rose 1.7% ($397 million) after small falls in the previous two quarters.
The largest industry increase was in grocery, liquor and tobacco wholesaling, which was up 2% ($152 million). Fruit exporters come under this category. The trend for this industry has been increasing steadily since mid-2013.
The trend for wholesale trade sales has generally been rising since the September 2009 quarter.
The actual value of wholesale trade sales was $23.6 billion in the June 2016 quarter, up $914 million (4%) from the June 2015 quarter.
