Corona Virus is understandably on a lot of exporters and manufacturers minds as they scramble to cope with the disruptions to global supply chains and slower movement of goods and people both in and out of China – see below for an update. We are currently touring through all our 8 regional ExportNZ offices, talking to exporters about their challenges and opportunities and taking along Government Officials that can hopefully help. It has been good to catch up with a lot of exporters and hear about your issues, which we will continue to advocate on once the road show is over.

Where did 2019 go? It was an action packed year on the trade front, with plenty of international drama that so far has mainly resulted in upside for NZ exporters (unless you were in steel or aluminium). That said, uncertainty is not a business persons friend and there is plenty of that still around, including with BREXIT. It is great to see the Export Credit Office has supported so many export sales, check them out below to see if they could help you.

In this edition, check out our latest trade update and if you are interested in doing business in India – there are some good opportunities coming your way. It is great to see pet food exporter Ziwi doing so well and I took that photo of their product at a pet store in Kashiwa, Japan recently. They were very prominently displayed. Great to see. If you are interested in Taiwan, get along to the conference in Wellington

In this newsletter we cover the latest intel on our international trade agreements, we look at the latest updates on Custom’s Secure Exports Scheme (SES) - see your customs check times fall from around an hour to just 17 seconds, and learn how Expo 2020 Dubai could benefit your business.

Our annual conference Go Global is only a couple of weeks away and I think we have one of the best speaker line-ups ever. Tickets are selling fast, so don’t miss out on this great learning and networking opportunity

In this newsletter we let you know how to escalate an urgent employment visa request, we cover the latest intel on our international trade agreements, and we remind you to fill in our annual ExportNZ survey so we can share your views with Government. If you are interested in opportunities in Mexico and Peru

In this newsletter we cover the latest trade drama’s in our trade update and a range of other useful info. Also, I reconnected with Callaghan Innovation recently when we asked them present to the BusinessNZ Chief Technology Officer group. It was a good reminder of things they have on offer for businesses doing R&D, and there are some new pilot programmes, including one on Lean 2.0

It really feels like winter now so I hope some of you are planning your overseas business travel to warmer climes! Trade war dramas and Brexit aside, there is plenty going on in terms of opportunties and you will see a few if you read on. We are also in Export awards season, so hope to see some of you in Tauranga and Auckland soon.

The year is speeding by and our ExportNZ regions are in full export awards mode. Check out the various awards events on our website. In this edition, we cover new package recycling requirements for the German market, a new tariff finder tool and many great seminars and events. If you are Christchurch based, don't miss the procurement seminar - big spenders that want to connect to suppliers!

As we head into an Easter break that promises to be a good one, exporters might have time to consider some of the good opportunities we outline in this months newsletter. We cover the latest forward notice of government agencies spending intentions, some market research from Lincoln University for F&B exporters and how to leverage the Rugby World Cup in Japan (go on – you know you want to be there!).