Government signs trade agreement with Russia

By LIAM DANN

New Zealand has signed a ground- breaking trade agreement with Russia which will ensure stable terms of access for our major exports.

The deal will also assist Russia in its efforts to join the World Trade Organisation.

New Zealand is only the second country - and the first Western economy - to sign this kind of bilateral deal with Russia. The other country is the Kyrgyz Republic in Central Asia.

Russia still needs to sign similar bilateral deals with other countries to gain membership of the WTO.

Agriculture Minister Jim Sutton, who attended a signing ceremony in Russia yesterday, said the deal was particularly positive for dairy and sheep meat exporters.

It would cover other products such as apples, kiwifruit and fridges.

Details about issues like tariff levels remain confidential and the deal will not come into effect until Russia formally joins the WTO.

Exporters welcomed the announcement despite the fact it will not lead to any immediate increase in returns.

The agreement would set a stable platform from which New Zealand could increase its trading relationship with Russia, said Meat New Zealand general manager of trade Anne Berryman.

New Zealand exported $6 million of meat to Russia last year. But Russia offered huge opportunities, she said.

The country's population of 147 million eat an average of 48kg of meat each annually.

Since the 1990s Russia has been heavily reliant on imported meat.

Dairy accounts for about 80 per cent of New Zealand exports to Russia.

The agreement set maximum levels for tariffs on dairy imports and provided security for New Zealand dairy access, said Fonterra chairman Henry van der Heyden.