New Zealand's merchandise terms of trade declined in the March 2012 quarter by 2.3 percent from the preceding quarter, Statistics NZ reported Friday.
It was the third straight quarterly decrease following a peak seen in the June 2011 quarter.
The agency attributed the Q1 decline to export prices falling more than import prices.
Export prices Fell 3.8 percent while imported merchandise prices fell 1.2 percent.
Statistics NZ noted that a 5.5 percent appreciation of the NZ dollar affected prices.
Export volume fell a seasonally adjusted 0.6 percent on quarter, due to lower export volumes for petroleum products and fruit.
by RTT Staff Writer
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