Newsletter

NZEC Newsletter – April 2024


Kia ora koutou from the NZEC team,
 
We hope you have been keeping well – we are excited to be back with another update of what has been happening in the world of Export Credit! Our team has been busier than ever assessing a variety of transactions and engaging with exporters to better understand their operations and how our solutions could be utilised to benefit their business strategies. 
 
In this newsletter we provide real life examples of how our solutions can be used in securing additional finance from your lender, bidding for international contracts, and mitigating the risk of non-payment from a foreign buyer. We also have a look at a summary of the claims we paid during the 2022/23 financial year.
 
There are a handful of upcoming events and seminars that we’re extremely excited for. Members of our team will be attending some of these events and we encourage you to come along too!
 
As usual, we have a lot to update you on, so we thank you for taking the time to stay up to date and hope you enjoy your reading!


We're here to help

NZEC is here to promote and support the growth of New Zealand exports. We do this by helping exporters and their integral domestic suppliers to:

  • Manage cashflow as they grow their business - We know that producing your export product or service to meet a confirmed order can create financial challenges. NZEC can help you with this by:
    • acting as a guarantor for your bank so that you can access additional bank facilities to help your business scale up;
    • helping support payment bonds to leave the prepayment funds in your business to produce the goods; or
    • supporting performance bonds to enable a successful tender for a contract.
  • Protect income - Non-payment is every business’s worst nightmare. Trade Credit Insurance reduces this risk and provides protection for non-payment in many situations when the private sector can’t.  

We have published many success stories showcasing practical examples of where our support has helped New Zealand exporters grow and develop into new markets. While we support exporters across a wide range of industries, there are common challenges that we see New Zealand exporters (and their funders) face every day. We want you to be able to see yourself in these stories, so that if you find yourself facing the same challenges, you know that we’re here to help.

Below are some examples of common situations our exporters have found themselves in, where NZEC has provided support. Do you identify with any of the below scenarios?

  • Are you a sales & marketing brand company utilising contract manufacturing and have an opportunity to grow sales in an offshore market, and are having trouble accessing finance?
  • Are you a manufacturer needing help financing ongoing growth in exports, be it for:
    • capital expenditure or working capital, or
    • working capital to fund a large one-off export order;
    • support to provide longer payment terms or issuance of a prepayment/performance bond so the prepaid funds received from the buyer can fund the order?
  • Do you need to protect yourself against payment risk on an offshore buyer and can't get cover?

We are size, sector and segment agnostic. Feel free to contact a member our Business Origination team or email us at [email protected]
 
Have a look at examples of exporters benefiting from NZEC’s support to grow sales when their funder required more security or to protect against payment risk. All our case studies are available at Success stories | NZ Export Credit (treasury.govt.nz)


Fieldays 2024

Fieldays

It is almost that time of the year where everything agriculture makes its way to Mystery Creek in Hamilton for Fieldays. It is the southern hemisphere’s largest agriculture event with a wide range of precincts and exhibitions. Fieldays is a fantastic opportunity to be immersed in the latest technology and innovations in the agriculture sector. NZEC’s own Renee will be attending the four-day event and we encourage you come along and have a chat. 


Further information on Fieldays 2024 can be found here: Fieldays | 12-15 June 2024 - Fieldays


2022/23 Financial Year Claims

Non-payment poses a significant threat to any business exporting their product overseas. Trade Credit Insurance assists to mitigate the risks of international trade. It is not only beneficial when dealing with unfamiliar buyers or markets, but also for customers that you have an established relationship with.
 
In the 2022/23 financial year, we paid a total of NZD 1.57 million in claims to cover exporter losses in the agriculture and food & beverage industries. Their exports to the Middle East and South Asia regions resulted in a less than ideal situation but luckily, once notified of the situation we were able to step in and provide assurance.
 
The value of the claims comprised of unpaid invoices and legal costs associated with recovery actions. We work closely with the exporter during this process to ensure they are satisfied with the recoveries, and are committed to ensuring exporters get paid, despite circumstances outside of their control.

Upcoming Events

Below details a list of upcoming export industry events.
 
EMA Export Event with NZAero
30th April 2024
Connect with like-minded exporters and hear the new government's ideas and plans for NZ's manufacturers. Hosted at NZAero in Hamilton, the event will feature insights from Alan McDonald (EMA), Joshua Tan (ExportNZ) & Stephen Burrows (NZAero). 

EMA Export Event with Serious Fraud Office - Risks to NZ Exporters
8th May 2024
Learn about foreign bribery, how to assess the risks to your business and leave with practical steps you can utilise to ensure your business is protected. The event will ran by speakers Cam Moore and Rose Rehm.

ExportNZ ASB Wellington Export Awards 2024
6th June 2024
The ExportNZ ASB Wellington Export Awards annually honours and celebrates the accomplishments of Lower North Island based companies in exporting goods and services to overseas markets.
 
ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards 2024
1st August 2024
The ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards, now in its milestone tenth year, is an annual event that celebrates the achievements of companies based within the Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne/ Tairāwhiti region, in exporting goods and services to overseas markets.


MFAT Market reports

MFAT publishes regular reports on topics of interest to the New Zealand export community. The latest reports include:

Latest reports:


If you'd like to subscribe to these and other reports, then click on:
Market Intelligence Reports

You can view the complete list of market reports published to date here:


Team Update

Sadly, Joana will be leaving the NZEC family this month as she continues her exciting journey to Australia. Joana has been with the Treasury for the last 3 years and most recently held the role of Process and Reporting Analyst within the Export Credit team. Joana’s input has been critical in the delivery of both our internal and external reporting obligations, providing accurate financial and policy related reports to managers and the production of our most recent annual report. Ka nui te mihi ki a koe Joana, we wish her and her partner all the best in their next endeavours.

Team Movements

Rob Downie will be in Wellington 29th - 30th of April and 20th – 21st May.
 
Please make contact if you would like to arrange time to meet the team in the above locations. Alternatively, the team is always available for meetings in person, virtually using Skype, Zoom, Teams or over the phone. Contact details are on our website.

NZEC LinkedIn profile

A reminder that NZEC has its own LinkedIn account, which can enable you to keep up to date on our latest case studies, news and regional visits.

Our link is: https://www.linkedin.com/company/new-zealand-export-credit/


Kind regards,

Peter, Feliza, Rob, Phil, Michael, Renee, Shalene, Eddie, Joana, Annie, Sarah and Caiden.