Export tax and import-tariff avoidance: evidence from the trade data discrepancy in the China-New Zealand trade

Abstract

We analyse discrepancy in the trade data between China and New Zealand, where what China reports as its exports to New Zealand and what New Zealand reports as its imports from China reached an alarming level of US$2.5 billion in 2014. We investigate the roles that export-tax and import-tariff avoidance play in explaining this discrepancy. We find strong evidence of export-tax avoidance for China’s exports to New Zealand that explains 11–27% of the missing exports, equivalent to 3.9–8.8% of true export value. We find only weak evidence of import-tariff avoidance in either direction.