How will the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States affect New Zealand?
It’s too early to say but it is probable that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (the TPP) will not go ahead. Trump has already said that he does not favour free trade. In fact, he has said that he wants to tax imports to protect industries in the US. New Zealand exports more than $8 billion of goods to the US – most meat and dairy products. If large import duties are added to these products, the price could be too high for American consumers. We also import nearly $8bn of goods from the US including aircraft, vehicles and heavy machinery.
John Key and the leaders of other political parties have been careful to say that they will work with President Trump because a good relationship with the US is important to us. Next week, an American navy ship will be joining our navy 75-year celebrations.
Immigration NZ has said that thousands of Americans have logged onto their website since the results of the election last night. Australia and Canada report that thousands of Americans have shown an interest in their immigration websites too. While it is easy to show an interest in moving to a new country, it is not an easy decision to immigrate; nor is it easy to be accepted as a migrant.
However, we are happy to encourage Americans to come here as tourists.
Vocabulary
• affect (v) – to influence, make a difference
• TPP – Trans- Pacific Partnership Agreement, a free trade agreement with 12 countries
• import duties – taxes on imports
• consumers – people who buy products or use products
• aircraft – planes, aeroplanes