Export prices hit new high

Exports will help stoke an economic recovery and prevent recession. Photo / File photo

New Zealand's commodity export price index rose for a fourth month to a record in December, led by meat, hides and aluminum, ANZ National Bank said.

The index increased 2 per cent from November, when it gained 4.5 per cent, the bank said in a report released in Wellington yesterday.

After adjusting for movements in the currency, prices rose 4.5 per cent.

Prices have gained 23 per cent from a year earlier, adding to signs that exports, which make up 30 per cent of the economy, will help stoke an economic recovery and prevent a recession after gross domestic product shrank 0.2 per cent in the third quarter.

"Lifts in commodity prices, if sustained over time, will present a tremendous windfall for the economy," Steve Edwards and fellow ANZ National economists said.

"At present, the flow-on to the general economy is being curtailed by adverse weather and a rural property market that remains under pressure."

A report this week showed New Zealand exports increased 7.5 per cent in the year ended November 30, led by rising prices and demand from China.

The dollar rose against the US currency in the past year and, adjusting for that, prices have increased 16 per cent since December 2009, yesterday's report showed.

Ten of 15 commodities tracked by ANZ National showed gains from November, with three unchanged and two declines.

- BLOOMBERG