The Business Travel Magazine December/January 2018/19
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
DEPARTURES<br />
Focus on... Australia & New Zealand<br />
A shared language plus<br />
similarities in the legal<br />
and administrative<br />
systems make trade<br />
between the UK and its<br />
Commonwealth<br />
cousins Down Under<br />
relatively simple, writes<br />
Benjamin Coren<br />
UK businesses looking for new<br />
opportunities overseas might<br />
overlook Australia and New<br />
Zealand, simply because the two<br />
nations seem so far away. In reality,<br />
actually being on the other side of<br />
the world matters little. Our shared<br />
history and heritage easily outweigh<br />
the perceived problems, making<br />
both countries the ideal place to<br />
test products.<br />
<strong>The</strong> numbers add up. Australia is<br />
the 13th-largest economy, while its<br />
citizens boast the second-highest<br />
wealth per capita. Meanwhile, New<br />
Zealand is already the UK's fifthlargest<br />
two-way trading partner.<br />
Those making the leap should be<br />
aware of certain challenges, of<br />
course. Australia has very strict<br />
biosecurity regulations that need to<br />
be considered for imports of<br />
certain products and packaging.<br />
And visiting is time-consuming –<br />
it can take 24 hours to fly there;<br />
factor in the time and cost when<br />
sending products to market. <strong>The</strong><br />
time difference of seven to 11<br />
hours can also make international<br />
business calls difficult.<br />
Trade minister Graham Stuart<br />
headed to Australia and New<br />
Zealand earlier this year as the<br />
Department for International Trade<br />
(DIT) kicked off its opening<br />
consultations about future trade<br />
relationships post-Brexit.<br />
Stuart promoted opportunities<br />
for UK firms in NZ infrastructure<br />
and launched a joint UK-Australia<br />
investment report, which shows the<br />
UK is now the second-largest<br />
Time zones: Australia has<br />
five time zones ranging<br />
from GMT +8hrs in the west to<br />
GMT +11hrs in the east.<br />
Currency: Australian Dollar:<br />
£1 = AUD1.80. New Zealand<br />
Dollar: £1 = NZD1.95;<br />
Dialling codes: Australia +61.<br />
New Zealand: +64.<br />
Visas: To enter Australia, UK<br />
citizens require a valid passport<br />
and an approved ETA (apply<br />
online). British travellers can<br />
enter New Zealand for up to six<br />
months with no visa.<br />
100 THEBUSINESSTRAVELMAG.com
Change language