Young Jonathan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeYoung Jonathan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 06 May 2014. Volume:698;Page:17479. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]4.JONATHAN YOUNG (National—New Plymouth) to theMinister for Economic Development: What recent reports has he received on New Zealand’s export performance?Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Economic Development): I have seen the recent Statistics New Zealand overseas merchandise trade report for the first quarter of this year. I am pleased to announce to the House that March 2014 was a banner month for New Zealand exports. Exports rose by 15 percent compared with March 2013 exceeding $5 billion in value for the first time. There was a trade surplus of $920 million the highest ever for a March month. Indeed in the March quarter there was a trade surplus of $1.1 billion—the highest surplus for the series—and it was equating to a trade surplus in the last 6 months of almost $2.5 billion. Our current account deficit is now down to 3.4 percent of GDP. In 2008 it averaged over 8 percent. So the recentlyrumoured export crisis seems to be about as big a problem as the much talked about manufacturing crisis.Jonathan Young: What is the Government doing to grow new and existing markets for New Zealand exporters?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: As part of the Government’s comprehensive Business Growth Agenda we have set an ambitious target of increasing the ratio of exports to GDP from 30 percent to 40 percent by 2025. A big part of achieving that target is developing new and existing international markets for our goods and services. For example trade between New Zealand and China has grown dramatically over the last 5 years. The Minister of Trade Tim Groser has made excellent progress signing the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement overseeing the development of trade between New Zealand and Chinese Taipei and advancing negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the comprehensive regional partnership and free-trade agreements within the India Korea and the Gulf Cooperation Council. When you are developing exports there is no substitute for hard work—and it is certainly not fiddling around with KiwiSaver when you do not know what you are doing.Jonathan Young: What other reports has he seen on New Zealand’s export performance?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: I saw a report as recently as last evening from a commentator who suggested that New Zealand’s positive export performance was down to just two industries: logs and dairy. I am pleased to advise that commentator that he is quite wrong. For example the value of our high-tech manufacturing exports has grown from just $100 million in 1990 to $1.4 billion in 2012 exports of IT services have increased by 11 percent per year since 2002 exports of computer and information services have increased by 85 percent since 2006 and wine exports have increased from $300 million a year 10 years ago to over $1.3 billion in the year to March. These are amazing achievements from these new and growing industries and can I suggest to that commentator that he go and see some of them rather than get his information from that noted economic soothsayer David Parker.