New Zealand and India are set for greater economic collaboration
Speaking at a New Zealand India Trade Alliance meeting organised by global professional services PwC earlier this week, New Zealand’s Treasury Secretary Gabriel Makhlouf has indicated the country’s intentions to build an expanding trade relationship with India in the near future.
Makhlouf elucidated how trade between the two countries has been growing in recent years, exemplified by the fact that the trade value between the two countries stood at $3 billion last year, which is twice the amount that it was five years previously. Similar growth can be traced in the level of imports from India.
New Zealand imported over $700 million in goods and nearly $250 million in services last year, both of which cumulatively registered a 75% increase since 2013. Exports from New Zealand to India have also doubled over the period between 2013 and 2018 from $1 billion to $2 billion last year.
The difference has come in the composition of exports, given that the majority of the export value was generated from goods in 2013, while services constituted a much smaller share. By last year, the export of goods had grown by less that $50 million, while the value of services had tripled, growing by more than $$700 million.
According to Makhlouf, this relationship is only set to become stronger in the near future, at least as far as New Zealand’s policies are concerned. India has an enormous population, and increasing economic prosperity has led to rapid economic growth in the country over recent years.
Current growth rates will project the country into the top 2 economies in the world by 2050, and Makhlouf has declared that New Zealand intends to grow increasingly affiliated with the substantial economy. He spoke at the New Zealand India trade alliance, which was held by Big Four accounting and advisory firm PwC.
“We are both countries that are ambitious to grow our economy and enjoy the benefits that can come from that. India’s economic growth has been booming. It’s currently the world’s sixth largest economy and Prime Minister Modi has expressed a hope that it will be within the top three in the next 15 years,” said Makhlouf.
“In thinking about the opportunities for the New Zealand India economic relationship to grow stronger, one of the factors that gives me great cause for optimism is the personal ties that connect our countries,” he added, emphasising that liberalisation of trade between the two countries is absolutely essential to realise this goal.
