New Zealand firms double down in China as bilateral trade ties deepen

As New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon concluded a four-day official visit to China earlier this month, the two countries added fresh momentum to their already robust trade partnership, with New Zealand companies pledging long-term commitment to the Chinese market.

China is New Zealand's largest trading partner and a major market for its agricultural products. In 2024, trade between China and New Zealand reached 38.26 billion New Zealand dollars ($22.86 billion), with exports to China accounting for 20.6 percent of New Zealand's total exports and 25 percent of its total goods exports, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.

Executives and experts noted that the enduring economic ties reflect China's growing appeal as a key market for New Zealand businesses, particularly in agriculture and food exports.

Within this framework, Zespri Board Chairman Nathan Flowerday, who accompanied Luxon, witnessed the signing ceremony earlier this month of the "Zespri Decade Sales Doubling - Strategic Development Memorandum" for the Chinese market.

Zespri signed the memoranda of understanding with Joy Wing Mau and Goodfarmer, the kiwifruit marketer's two largest distributors in China, and retailers Pagoda and Xianfeng Fruit – the largest fruit shop chains in China. Under the agreement, Zespri aims to double the value of fruit exports to China over the next decade.

This is based on firm confidence in the long-term positive development of New Zealand-China economic and trade relations, Flowerday said during the signing ceremony.

Since entering the market in 2009, Zespri has increased its sales twentyfold. In 2024, its revenue in China surpassed 1.4 billion New Zealand dollars, with its distribution network covering 70 major cities and more than 100,000 retail terminals nationwide.

"The key to our success lies in the deep localization strategy," said Jiang Shijie, president of Zespri Greater China. "We have established an efficient supply chain through collaboration with strategic partners covering 80 percent of our business, while accurately responding to the health needs of Chinese consumers."

In fact, this business success is underpinned by the continuously enhanced China-New Zealand financial infrastructure.

To promote the high-quality development of economic and trade between China and New Zealand, Bank of China New Zealand has carried out comprehensive cooperation with leading enterprises in various industries of New Zealand in the fields of corporate financing, supply chain management, and RMB settlement, said Hu Beihai, CEO of Bank of China (New Zealand) Ltd.

"In 2024, the annual RMB settlement volume of Bank of China New Zealand reached 23.84 billion yuan, ranking among the top financial institutions in New Zealand," Hu said.

"Bank of China New Zealand has established a close cooperative relationship with Zespri's headquarters, not only providing liquidity management services for Zespri but also extending business relations to Shanghai. Bank of China is willing to further cooperate with Zespri in RMB cross-border and RMB transaction fields to become Zespri's round-the-clock financial partner," Hu said.

"During the 10 years from 2015 to 2024, the average annual compound growth rate of China's fruit import value was 15.3 percent, and the average annual compound growth rate of import volume was 8 percent," said Yu Lu, vice-president of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-Products.

Since the signing of the China–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement in 2008, New Zealand's exports to China have surged with an average annual growth rate of 14.1 percent from 2008 to 2024. That pace far outstripped the country's export growth to the rest of the world over the same period, which averaged 7.7 percent annually.