Daily Morning News

Former New Zealand PM Perspective on Trade with China: Striving for Excellence in Our Journey

In April 2008, China signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with New Zealand, which took effect in October of the same year. The two countries concluded their three-year negotiations on the upgrade of the FTA in November 2019 and signed a protocol in January 2021. The most recent protocol on upgrading the FTA became effective in April 2024, with the aim of further facilitating bilateral trade and investment.

Former New Zealand Prime Minister John Key recently visited China. He stated that New Zealand was the first Western country to recognize China as a market economy, and also the first developed country to negotiate and sign a free trade agreement with China. Regarding the FTA upgrade, Key mentioned that an increasing number of New Zealand entrepreneurs are confident in investing in the Chinese market.

During his tenure, Key met with Chinese officials and visited China many times, strengthening the friendship between China and New Zealand. Currently, as the chairman of the Investments Committee at Stonewood Key China, he continues to promote trade cooperation between the two countries in the field of new and sustainable energy.