3.2 China's demand for services exports
China's rapid growth has also benefited New Zealand through services exports, mainly tourism and education. Total services exports to China in the year to December 2012 were $1.2 billion and have grown from $0.3 billion in 2000, taking them to 7.6% of all-country services exports. The majority of services exports to China are personal travel which is split fairly evenly between education travel and 'other personal' travel (ie, tourism). Total exports to China (merchandise and services) were $8.1 billion (13.4% of total all-country exports and 3.9% of GDP) in the year to December 2012.
Between 2006 and 2012 the average number of international fee-paying students enrolled in New Zealand from China was 24,256, the highest of any nationality and 26% of the total number of international students. This provides extra revenue for the secondary and tertiary education sector. The majority of the Chinese students are in tertiary education, with 28% at universities, 16% at polytechnics and 42% at other tertiary institutions. Assuming that Chinese students pay the same fees as other international students at each type of institution, their fees would have been $222 million in 2012 and 30% of the total $746 million in international student fees(Ministry of Education, 2012). These figures do not include accommodation costs and other expenses incurred by students while studying in New Zealand, which constitute an additional contribution to services exports.
- Figure 12 - Short-term visitor arrivals to New Zealand
- Source: Statistics New Zealand
Short-term visitors from China to New Zealand have grown rapidly over the past decade, reaching 197,000 in the year to December 2012 (Figure 12). This is 7.7% of the total and places China second after Australia (up from 2% and eighth place in 2000). Chinese tourists are generally high-spending, with average daily expenditure of $207 in 2012 being the highest of the major tourism source markets and well above the average of $111. As Chinese incomes have grown in recent years, so too has average daily expenditure, up from $107 in 2000. Chinese tourists stay an average of 16 nights, below the 19 night overall average. Chinese tourists spend the second most per stay (after Korea). In the year to December 2012, Chinese tourists spent $651 million in New Zealand (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, 2012), second after Australians. Part of this pick up in tourist spending can be put down to New Zealand and Australia becoming the first western countries to gain Approved Destination Status from the Chinese Government in 1999.
