From the continent, 57.2 percent of New Zealand's total imports in 2022 were purchased from Asian countries. European trading partners provided 19 percent of New Zealand's import purchases, while 11.8 percent of goods came from other countries in Oceania, led by Australia and Fiji. North American suppliers accounted for 10.3 percent.
Smaller percentages came from Latin America (excluding Mexico) and the Caribbean at 1.2 percent, followed by African exporters at 0.5 percent. Given New Zealand's population of 5.1 million, its 2022 imports will total $49.5 billion, which means each person in the Pacific island nation will need about $9,700 per year for products. That per capita amount exceeds the 2020 average of $7,400.
New Zealand's top 10 imports
The following product groups represent the highest dollar value of New Zealand's import purchases in 2022. Also shown is the percentage of overall New Zealand imports that each product group represents.
1. automobiles: $7.2 billion (14.5% of total imports) 2. machinery and equipment including computers: $6.9 billion (14%) 3. motors, equipment: $4.4 billion (8.8%) 4. fossil fuels including petroleum: $3.9 billion (7.9%) 5. plastics, plastics products: $2.0 billion (4.1%) 6. optics, technology, medical equipment: $1.6 billion (3.3%) 7. pharmaceuticals: $1.4 billion (2.9%) 8. iron and steel products: $1.2 billion (2.4%) 9. furniture, bedding, lighting, signs, prefabricated buildings: $1.1 billion (2.3%) 10. food industry waste, animal feeds: $975.2 million (2%)
New Zealand's top 10 imports account for its total value of products purchased from other countries purchasing 62.3% of the total value of products. Imported automobiles had the fastest value growth among New Zealand's top 10 import categories due to a 72% increase from 2020 to 2022. This is followed by imports of iron and steel products (up 58.1%), furniture, bedding, lighting, signs and prefabricated buildings (up 50.2%), pharmaceuticals (up 41.7%), and then plastics as a material and items made from plastics (up 40.4%).
Please note that the results listed above are at the 2-digit Harmonized Tariff System code level. The information shown under the Other Virtual Folders tab is at a more granular 4-digit level