The importance of trade agreements

Fran O’Sullivan writes:

Christopher Luxon’s Government is putting its distinct imprint on New Zealand’s trade strategy, one that treats economic security as seriously as market access.

This will come into sharp focus when Luxon travels to Singapore in early May for top-level talks with his prime ministerial counterpart Lawrence Wong, the launch of the inaugural Singapore New Zealand Leadership Forum and the first steps in a strategy to triangulate the Singapore, New Zealand, Australia relationship.

The evolving economic security architecture owes far more to Covid-era improvisation and the current fuel crisis than to traditional trade diplomacy.

The most obvious demonstration is a novel agreement with Singapore under which the city-state commits to continue supplying fuel to New Zealand in return for continued food exports.

According to a senior official, it is possibly unique in the world: two countries voluntarily waiving their rights to impose export restrictions on each other in a crisis.

This agreement is a life saver for NZ. We guarantee food exports to Singapore and they guarantee fuel to NZ. As supply reduces and prices increase, this could make a huge difference.

This is why trade agreements with other countries are so important. Both for the actual legal commitments, but also for the relationship it builds. NZ is a very small country, and needs friends.

This is why scaremongering over the India FTA on the basis of 200 extra migrants a year is so stupid. It is literally putting New Zealand last. You really want to snub the most populous country on earth?