According to the official figures released Tuesday, during the month of June, New Zealand's trade balance was forced into an unexpected deficit by aircraft imports.
Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) said that because of the several large aircraft worth 571 million, New Zealand posted a trade shortage of 417 million dollars (274 million US).
Economists were surprised by the shortage for the month, as they had expected a surplus of approximately 265 million dollars.
SNZ said that the country recorded a trade deficit of 3.18 billion dollars for the 12 months to June, up from a revised 2.97 billion dollars in the year to May.
In the month of June, the total imports were decreased by 192 million dollars, from the same month last year at 3.6 billion dollars, in spite of the aircraft imports, linked with Qantas subsidiary Jetstar setting up domestic services in New Zealand.
A fall was also notable in exports by 395 million dollars from a year earlier to 3.20 billion in the month, the largest decline since July 2007. "Crude oil exports fell by 193 million dollars to 128 million dollars due to lower prices and smaller shipments, while dairy shipments were down 69 million dollars at 552 million dollars," concluded SNZ.