One of the major pain points faced by the import/export industry in New Zealand is long lead times. This is largely due to its isolation compared to the rest of the world – time zones and physical delivery can be laborious. High transportation costs also burden the trade environment and can drive up the price of goods and services in the region – this is especially true for bulky and heavy goods.
This industry’s prominence is evident as big names such as Datacom, Xero, and Fujitsu now operate from New Zealand. Although a popular import destination, New Zealand has strict import procedures and restrictions on radio equipment operating at various frequencies in the 151MHz range.
New Zealand is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and has free trade agreements with a large list of countries across the world. These free trade agreements aim to reduce tariffs and other barriers to trade, which makes it easier for cross-border trade in New Zealand.