New Zealand Exports Rise 13.5% to NZD 7.39 Billion in July

Q: If New Zealand exports surged 13.5%, why did the trade deficit still widen sharply in July 2026?

The deficit widened because imports rose much faster than exports. While exports increased 13.5% year on year to NZD 7.39 billion in July, imports jumped about 28.4% to a record NZD 9.34 billion, pushing the monthly trade gap out to roughly NZD 1.95 billion. The main reason was fuel. New Zealand imports all of its petroleum, and the value of fuel imports more than doubled to NZD 1.67 billion. Statistics New Zealand said that was driven predominantly by higher prices, after the global energy shock lifted oil costs. Fuel alone accounted for a large share of the rise in total imports. Other imports also added pressure. Purchases of vehicles, machinery and fertiliser increased, further lifting the import bill. So even though export earnings were strong in dairy, meat, aluminium and fruit, they were not enough to offset the much bigger surge in import costs. Seasonality also mattered. July export growth was solid compared with a year earlier, but the total export level fell back from June because the peak dairy and fruit shipping season had passed. That meant exports were rising on an annual basis, but not strongly enough in the month to match record imports. The broader trend shows the same pattern: in the 12 months to July, imports rose about NZD 9 billion to NZD 89.8 billion, while exports rose 10%, widening the annual trade deficit to NZD 5.24 billion.

1 articles · Updated · TradingView · Aug 21

NZD 7.39 billion in July exports marked a 13.5% year-on-year increase for New Zealand, extending the strong trade momentum seen a month earlier.
Milk powder, butter and cheese led the gains with sales up 6.4%, while meat and edible offal jumped 34.0%, aluminum products 43.0% and fruit 15.0%.
The July increase followed a downwardly revised 20.8% export surge in June, showing growth cooled from the prior month but remained robust.