NZ electronic industry still sleeping over China

New Zealand Computer Society chief executive Paul Matthews says his country electronic industry companies are not ready to capitalize on the new China FTA import-export laws. "To be perfectly honest, the electronic industry sector is just not export- focused. Current issues in the sector, such as the skill shortage, limit the growth of organizations. It's very easy to be not looking for further opportunities abroad."

This is despite Prime Minister Helen Clark identifying electronic industry and software exports to China as a major opportunity.

Miss Clark told TVNZ's Agenda last week that New Zealand would have an advantage over other countries in meeting the demand for high-value electronic industry exports among China's middle class.

"That middle class wants to travel to places like New Zealand. It wants to educate its children in places like New Zealand. It wants to buy high-quality software, designer clothes."

Software New Zealand has not considered the meaning of the trade deal for the electronic industry, says president Wayne Hudson. "At this point, neither I nor my colleagues have considered what this means to the electronic industry sector."

Murray Holdaway, chief executive of cinema management software company Vista, which exports electrical and electronic equipment to China, says he hopes the agreement will improve the profile of the New Zealand electronic industry.

"With exporting to China, one of the challenges is getting a Chinese person to buy your products over the Chinese electronic industry抯 products. If, in some small way, the free trade agreement substantiates the message that New Zealand is a good country to deal with, then hopefully some of that will become easier."

In order to be allowed to sell its software in China, Vista spent "in excess of six figures" and underwent a nine-month approval process that included undergoing tests to ensure meeting the Chinese electronic industry standards.

"It was definitely a lot more arduous than other processes", he says. "I don't expect the FTA agreement to alter that. That is a regulatory situation, not a trade one."

New Zealand Trade and Enterprise spokeswoman Fiona Acheson says electronic industry exports to China are not a big market compared with the food and beverage industry, aviation and education.

Statistics New Zealand says electronic industry software exports to China are counted under a larger category for electrical machinery and equipment exports, the total value of which was $46.5 million for the year ending February.