Kiwis keen on buying a bit of British

British consul-general Stephen Turner and trade officer Sarah McCourtie at a Jaguar dealership in Auckland. Picture / Fotopress

New Zealanders might not be sure they want the Queen as head of state but on the topic of goods from the UK, they are unequivocal. Bring it on.

Figures for the year to November 30 show the value of UK exports to New Zealand was up 17 per cent on the previous year.

The strong New Zealand dollar boosted the numbers, but the rise was also linked to demand for UK consumables and luxury goods, said British consul-general Stephen Turner.

He said New Zealanders were - per capita - top of the table as consumers of UK food and drink "as we head into the best season of the year for speciality food items and giftware".

New Zealand imports from the UK have been increasing since 2002.

On example is motor vehicles - including luxury Jaguar cars - up from £28 million to £43 million in the year to date.

* Fashion and accessories have doubled to over £1.3 million.

* Textile imports now exceed £1.1 million.

* Beverage imports are more than £5.6 million.

* Confectionery imports exceed £1 million.

Turner said the UK and New Zealand economies were dominated by small and medium enterprises.

"Luxury food, drink and giftware tend to be supplied by UK SMEs rather than big companies and New Zealand is a great market place for them."

He said the rules were clear, the business environment transparent and it was easy and straightforward to have a mutually successful relationship with importers.