ANZ takes exporters to China

The Chinese market is acknowledged as a hard nut to crack but many Kiwi businesses may never have thought of doing it through their bank.

ANZ has begun running tours of New Zealand exporters to China, aimed at helping them identify growth opportunities and gain a deeper understanding of a market with an increasing significance for this country's economy.

Last month it took 25 exporting customers from a wide range of industries, including wine, seafood, agribusiness, food manufacturing and textiles on a week-long tour of Shanghai, Beijing and Tianjin.

ANZ's managing director commercial, Graham Turley, said a key part of the exercise was to connect customers with each other, so the 25 who went on the tour were carefully selected.

Turley said a tour of agricultural exporters from both sides of the Tasman was planned for August, and in September it would run another general tour of Kiwi exporters, including offering one seafood company an all-expenses-paid place.

The visits come after an ANZ investor tour to Hong Kong and Singapore last year, and a trip to Shanghai organised by ANZ migrant banking, focusing on the international student and skilled migrant markets.

The tours coincide with ANZ's sponsorship of the New Zealand and Australian pavilions at the Shanghai World Expo.

Turley said it was part of a "super-regional strategy" of supporting New Zealand and Australian businesses looking to invest and trade in Asia, and Asian companies wanting to do the same here.

With 162 branches in 14 Asian countries and a network through its partners Shanghai Rural Bank and Tianjin Bank, one of the purposes was to show customers the access ANZ had in China.

"It was a mixture of introducing them to different sorts of experts up there as well as giving them an experience in how factories work."

The tour included visits to the factory which makes clothing company Icebreaker's products, and a furniture factory.

The tourists heard from local PricewaterhouseCoopers and Anderson Lloyd experts on tax and law in China, and talked to The Warehouse's Chinese representative about supply chain logistics.

They also met local representatives of New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and the Beachheads programme, plus the New Zealand ambassador.

The exporters paid their own airfares and the bank picked up costs on the ground in China.

Other banks are offering similar services.

Tony Arthur, BNZ's head of agribusiness, said the bank took a tour of farming customers to China in 2008 and was looking at another one next year.

"Visiting a market like China provides our clients with a first-hand insight into what is driving these large economies and global food demand, which are having a profound effect not only on New Zealand but also on farm."

With 100 outlets in China, HSBC believed its network was its point of difference, head of corporate banking Brent Malcolm said.

Sometimes staff would go up to Asia with Kiwi clients, but more often HSBC used its people on the ground to make introductions to potential buyers and suppliers.

"It's more beneficial having the client involved with our people in the local setting."