Exporters busy last year

About 17 per cent of businesses exported products or services in 2005 and 5 per cent entered new export markets, a Statistics New Zealand survey has found.

The Business Operations Survey said the manufacturing industry led the way, with 41 per cent of manufacturers exporting and 14 per cent entering new markets.

The survey showed 52 per cent of businesses had engaged in innovation over the previous two years.

The industries with the highest innovation rate were finance and insurance (68 per cent) and manufacturing (65 per cent).