Boost to Pacific Islands exports

A new council has been formed to help promote Pacific Islands exports to New Zealand.

The New Zealand Pacific Business Council (NZPBC) has said its top priority will be to boost two-way trade between the Pacific and New Zealand.

An council member, Chris Cocker, said the Pacific needed to focus on exports to help redress the major trade imbalance with countries like New Zealand and Australia.

A trade commissioner with the Pacific Islands Trade and Investment Commission, Cocker said the Pacific Island nations were too dependent on agricultural exports.

He said the countries needed to investigate new avenues like value-added products.

The new council was important in that it focused on private sector input and could provide independent advice to governments in the Pacific, he said.

Representatives on the council come from businesses such as the marine industry, insurance brokers, manufacturers, banking groups, engineers, and importers and exporters working in the Pacific.