New Zealand recorded a small trade surplus in July, with shipments of dairy products to China making up for weaker exports to Australia, Indonesia and India.
The surplus was $15 million last month, down from a revised $287 million in the previous month, according to Statistics New Zealand. Exports slipped to $4.03 billion from $4.18 billion, while imports gained to $3.99 billion from $3.89 billion.
The annual deficit was $853 million, or 1.8 per cent of exports. Economists had forecast a monthly surplus of $33 million and an annual gap of $820 million, according to a Reuters survey.
Total exports to China rose 39 per cent in July from a year earlier while exports to Australia fell 7.4 per cent, reflecting a drop in crude oil and refrigeration equipment.
In the 12 months ended July31, exports to Australia edged up 0.1 per cent to $10.39 billion, keeping New Zealand's nearest neighbour firmly at the top of the table. Exports to China rose about 11 per cent to $6.26 billion and shipments to the US grew 4.5 per cent to $4.1 billion. Japan was in fourth place, with exports rise in 0.2 per cent to $3.4 billion.