It Has Taken Ten Years But Finally The Deal Has Been Inked With The Signing Of The NZ EU Free Trade Deal With The European Union

It has taken ten years but finally the deal has been inked with the signing of the NZ EU free trade deal with the European Union. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins signed the FTA in Brussels overnight that will eventually deliver billions of dollars of export savings. Eventually, 97% of New Zealand’s current exports to the EU will be duty-free, with more than 91% of tariffs removed the day the deal comes into effect. There will be immediate tariff elimination for all kiwifruit, wine, onions, apples, mānuka honey and manufactured goods, as well as for almost all fish and seafood, and other horticultural products. Red meat and dairy will get up to $120m worth of new annual export revenue on day one of the deal, with estimates of more than $600m within seven years. Quotas have been established for butter, cheese, milk powders and protein whey. EU Ambassador to NZ Nina Obermaier says the member states approved the deal two weeks ago and now it is up to the parliamentarians in the EU and NZ to give their consent.