WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s terms of trade rose in the first three months of the year, snapping two quarters of decline, as a slump in the price of imported petrol offset weaker prices for dairy exports.
The terms of trade rose 1.5 per cent in the first quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand.
That lagged behind the 1.7 per cent gain projected in a Reuters survey.
The nation’s terms of trade, which measures the quantity of imports the country can buy with a set amount of exports, reached a 40-year high in the second quarter of 2014 as a high kiwi dollar kept import prices in check.
They deteriorated in the second half of last year as dairy export prices declined and the currency fell from a post-float high on a trade-weighted basis.
The gains may not last, given the price of crude oil has risen from its lows while dairy prices remain weak.
