New Zealand's trade surplus widened in March as Chinese demand for dairy products continued to soar, driving the monthly and annual export receipts to new records.
The trade surplus was $920 million in March, from a revised $793 million in February, and $732 million a year earlier, according to Statistics New Zealand. The annual trade balance was a surplus of $805 million, or 1.6 percent of exports. Economists polled by Reuters predicted a monthly surplus of $937 million and an annual surplus of $920 million.
Exports climbed 15 percent to $5.08 billion, for an annual increase of 8.5 percent to $50.07 billion. That was the first time New Zealand's international sales topped $5 billion in a month and $50 billion in year.
Milk powder, butter and cheese exports advanced 45 percent to $1.53 billion in March for an annual increase of 31 percent to $14.92 billion, while casein and caseinates gained 17 percent to $93 million for an annual lift of 7.5 percent to $988 million. Dairy products accounted for about 30 percent of all exports.
"While March tends to be the peak month for exports, this was also a record high in seasonally adjusted terms," Westpac Banking Corp senior economist Michael Gordon said in a note. "Dairy products were down 9 percent by volume, but there were increases in exports of meat, oil and machinery."
