Brexit - what does it all mean?

There are risks and maybe opportunities for New Zealand from BREXIT – this will take a while to unfold; read our initial assessment here and in the Trade Update below.

Awesome Export Awards events in Auckland/Waikato and Bay of Plenty last week; with a huge array of talented exporters taking their products and services to the world. 

Check out the winners from Bay of Plenty here

Check out the winners from Auckland/Waikato here 

Our congrats to all the winners and finalists – the standards were very high and great to see some exciting new emerging exporters taking the stage.

Go Global 2016 is over - what now?

Do you want another Go Global? How could it be better? What works for you? Please let us know if you have any suggestions or feedback.

For highlights from speakers and delegates of this year's event, click here to watch a short video.

Also in this issue, we have international business matching, trade missions, events, tools and updates to help a variety of exporters in a variety of different markets. I hope you find something that helps your business.

Catherine Beard
027 463 3212 or cbeard@exportnz.org.nz

In this month's Trade Update - New Zealand played host last week to the latest negotiating round in ECFA. This negotiation is not (as much of the media maintained) a China centered agreement but an ASEAN initiated process and involves also the three large north Asian economies – China, Korea and Japan – India and Australia and New Zealand.

The importance of this negotiation for New Zealand is that it gives us a potential to achieve better access to India and Japan than we have at present. Out FTA negotiation with India is not making much traction and better access to Japan is at present hostage to the ratification of TPP. More...

C Beard

Thailand and Malaysia are two of ASEAN’s strongest economies and are our eighth and ninth trading partners respectively. This is your chance to have one-on-one meetings with key decision makers, customers and partners, to help you generate new business and deeply understand these markets.

The New Zealand – Thailand Closer Economic Partnership
(CEP) has opened up the Thai market. Within 10 years of
being signed, tariffs on virtually all manufactured goods have
disappeared, with the remaining ones finally going by 2025.

Malaysia has free trade agreements with Japan, Pakistan, New Zealand, Chile, Australia, ASEAN and India, and it has plans to further strengthen its vibrant ICT industry. More...

I recently met with representatives of the Bank Of China – which is the 4th largest bank in China and operates in 46 countries and regions around the world.  Established in NZ since 2014, they have organised a number of business matching events where they bring together NZ and Chinese companies that have a mutual interest in two-way trade.  It is part of the Bank of China’s modus operandi to have cross-border trade and investment conferences. Many good relationships are formed and deals done as a result.  They can be a good filter of who is sound to do business with – as about 1 in 4 companies in China also bank with the Bank of China.

Want to know more? Check out the list of Chinese company profiles that attended the most recent conference on 25th May, see photos here and slides here.

For more information or to contact any companies, get in touch with Wee Li Cheong or Kevin Liu or Relationship Manager Eric Teh.

The NZCFS has recently joined with the prestigious Winston Churchill Memorial Trust in awarding an annual Fellowship for Kiwis.

This Fellowship is for travel to China to gain knowledge, understanding and experience of Chinese culture and values, and sharing of New Zealand culture and values in China. More...

Registrations are now open for a new global food integrity conference to be held in Auckland on 13 – 14 July.

Now is a key time for food safety, with regulations and requirements changing worldwide and impacting the entire food chain of suppliers and producers. NZ’s supply chain with China is at the forefront of the conference, which aims to provide a forum for discussion on current issues facing food producers both in NZ and in China.

Click here for speakers, programme, registration and further details.

The Ministry for Primary Industries has an online tool to find out what rules you need to follow under the Food Act 2014. This law was recently modernised and recognises that each business is different, unlike the old legislation that had a one size fits all approach.

Click here to access this tool.

NZ Hawaii Business Connections is taking a group of New Zealand exporters to the Hawaii Lodging, Hospitality and Food Service Expo, on 13 and 14 July 2016. This expo is a business and industry trade event and the group will represent everything good that New Zealand has to offer the US in terms of food, beverages, products and services.

What an opportunity for you to encourage trial and establish new customers in the lucrative Hawaii market. More...

For costs and more information, ring Robyn Bartram on +64 4 293 6369 or 0274 908 644, or email robyn@nzhawaii.com.

I am on the GS1 New Zealand Board, which is a great way to keep up with trends in global retail when it comes to unique identifiers, and what bar codes are being used for. 

They are not just a handy things for the supermarkets to scan with; unique identifiers called Global Trade Item Numbers (GTIN’S) are used for traceability and product recall, for stock inventory and for ensuring on-line sales work seamlessly.  Google Shopping is making it a requirement for products to have GTIN’s – see GoogleShopping’s tutorial.

Watch video.

C Beard

For further information contact GS1 New Zealand.

A High Court ruling earlier last month has set an important precedent for New Zealand businesses that make claims about the country of origin of their products. The decision makes it clear that a “New Zealand made” representation may be a representation about where the raw ingredients come from.

In a case taken by the Commerce Commission, the High Court found that New Zealand Nutritionals (2004) Limited (NZ Nutritionals) made misleading “New Zealand made” claims about two dietary supplements. More...

Some exporters from New Zealand’s primary sector are exposed to potential service disruptions as the downturn in global shipping drives consolidation in the industry, says the CEO of one of the country's largest players in the logistics sector.

“We’re currently experiencing a global oversupply of shipping capacity. Together with low fuel costs, we’re seeing a continued decline in ocean freight rates which freight owners are enjoying, however these current market conditions are not sustainable,” said David Ross, chief executive of Kotahi, New Zealand largest export supply chain collaboration. More...

Universities New Zealand has welcomed the Tertiary Minister’s announcement that up to three Centres of Asia-Pacific Excellence (CAPEs) will be developed within New Zealand’s universities.

Minister Steve Joyce today announced funding of $34.5million over 4 years as part of Budget 2016. More...

Coda Group, the country’s leading freight management business, has welcomed the first rail wagons to its existing Savill Drive freight hub, in Auckland, creating one of New Zealand’s largest fully intermodal freight hubs.

Coda Chief Executive Scott Brownlee said the Coda intermodal freight hub will provide a consolidation point to bring together export, import and domestic cargo flows into one single location. More...

There are some great opportunities for improving your business through learnings at seminars, workshops and events. To see what's coming up, go to the ExportNZ home page and scroll down to see what's happening around the country.

Missed an issue of The Exporter? Click here to access all previous issues in our Newsletter Archive.