NZ welcomes lifting of US tariffs on $1.25 billion in exports

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WELLINGTON (Reuters) -New Zealand late on Sunday welcomed the United States’ announcement that it would remove additional tariffs on a range of New Zealand agricultural products, including beef, offal and kiwi fruit, but said it would like to see all the additional U.S. tariffs on New Zealand goods removed.

President Donald Trump on Friday removed tariffs he had imposed on more than 200 food products, including beef, amid consumer concerns about rising U.S. grocery prices. The products represent around 25% of New Zealand’s exports to the U.S. and are worth roughly NZ$2.21 billion ($1.25 billion) annually, according to the New Zealand government.

“The U.S. remains an important trade partner for New Zealand and the decision to lift these tariffs is a step in the right direction and will be welcomed by exporters who have faced months of uncertainty and higher costs,” New Zealand’s trade minister, Todd McClay, said in a statement released late on Sunday.

He said it was only a partial rollback and the broader reciprocal tariff framework continues to create cost and uncertainty for the country’s exporters. McClay said he would continue to make the case that New Zealand’s trading relationship with the U.S. is balanced and that the additional reciprocal tariffs on other New Zealand exports should also be removed.

($1 = 1.7612 New Zealand dollars)

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Leslie Adler)