New zealand Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in new zealand, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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eCommerce
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General Overview

The e-commerce market in New Zealand is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 7.1%, reaching $10.8b (NZ$17.6b) by 2028, according to GlobalData. This growth is driven by a significant shift from offline to online shopping. In 2023, the country’s e-commerce market grew by 12.3% to $7.5b (NZ$12.1b). Industries with the largest proportion of online retail sales in 2023 included supermarket sales, travel and accommodation, recreation, furniture and homeware, clothing and footwear and books and stationery. Online purchases are made by young and old, male and female. New Zealand is the 48th largest market globally for e-commerce sales. The New Zealand e-commerce market is expected to increase to US$10,121.8 million by 2027.

International e-commerce platforms including Amazon, Ebay, Alibaba and Temu are popular in New Zealand. New Zealand Post’s YouShop service offers delivery addresses in the United States to facilitate online trade between vendors and New Zealand consumers. Within New Zealand, most bricks and mortar retailers offer an online presence.

Legal & Regulatory

Non-resident U.S. companies selling online to New Zealand consumers must comply with local regulations including consumer and tax procedures. A U.S. company providing online services to New Zealand residents will need to register for GST when their total supplies of goods and services exceeds NZ$60,000 (US$36,324) in one year. This policy is managed by New Zealand’s  Inland Revenue Department.

Consumer Behavior

According to eCommerceDB, approximately 64% of online shoppers in New Zealand conduct online research when planning a major purchase. This is especially true when preparing to purchase consumer electronics and household appliances. Paying by credit card is the preferred payment method.

Digital Events:

Name:  DigiMarCon New Zealand
Dates: August 7-8, 2025
Location: Hilton Hotel, Auckland

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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