Trade Minister defends government export efforts

Phil Goff

Trade Minister Phil Goff has defended government efforts to boost exports following publication of a report by an Auckland-based think tank.

Mr Goff said today the New Zealand Institute report was a valuable contribution to discussion on this country's international economic engagement and competitiveness.

Institute chief executive David Skilling's report concurred with the Government's view that this country must grow more globally competitive exporters as the main vehicle for transforming New Zealand's economy, Mr Goff said .

But he disagreed with a suggestion in the report that too much emphasis was put on trade negotiations, rather than trade promotion.

The average annual cost for the past 10 years of the Government's core multilateral and bilateral trade negotiations effort was roughly $10 million.

The benefits had been substantial, with the World Trade Organisation's Uruguay Round benefiting New Zealand by around $900 million a year. If successful, the Doha Round could provide a similar dividend, Mr Goff said.

Spending on trade promotion was roughly $180 million a year through NZ Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) on market development and trade promotion, and $100 million on domestic capability building.

Also a substantial part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade's offshore work actively, daily and directly supported New Zealand businesses, he said.

That included efforts to overcome non-tariff barriers, supplying market intelligence and building valuable cultural and personal links.

The report's analysis also needs to better reflect the importance of services which now made up 28 per cent of New Zealand exports, Mr Goff said.

No mention was made of education export services which returned New Zealand more than $1 billion a year, and little was said of tourism, worth $17 billion a year.

The Government also disagreed with the report's call to abandon NZTE's onshore capacity building efforts, which it believed were an essential part of preparing firms for international engagement.

- NZPA