The value of New Zealand's indigenous Maori economy has nearly doubled in the past five years – with China emerging as a key export destination. New research shows Maori businesses are making inroads in the competitive Chinese market, thanks in part to shared cultural values between the two peoples. Our correspondent Owen Poland reports from Auckland.

When a group of indigenous Māori performed a traditional haka on China's Great Wall during a 2023 trade visit, they were also laying the cultural foundations for future success in one of the world's most competitive export markets.

JASON MIKA, Māori Business Consultant "Starting off with a cultural connection establishes a relationship. And it enables trust to be built and people to get to know one another – which is how we do business."

Māori-owned Kiwa Digital understands cultural relationships more than most, having built a global reputation with trade-marked VoiceQ software that can provide over 900 language translations for productions like China's blockbuster movie – The Wandering Earth.

"Grandpa, you know what's hydrogen? What is hydrogen? It's the fuel for daddy's rocket."

And Māori believe that successful business relationships in China are built on shared values. 

STEVEN RENATA, Kiwa Digital Managing Director "When we think about doing work, partnering, we start from a values perspective and see where those line up perfectly before we actually get into the commercial side of it."

The bonds of friendship between Māori and Chinese also run deep in New Zealand, especially after a memorial was created on tribal land for 19th century Chinese gold miners whose descendants rubbed noses with local Māori to symbolize unity.

JASON MIKA, Māori Business Consultant "We do have shared values and a shared way of thinking about what's important, what matters. Family matters, the environment matters, and being together and looking after one another."

And those values have also built a thriving Māori economy.

OWEN POLAND, Auckland "Over the past five years, the value of New Zealand's indigenous Māori economy has grown dramatically – by 80 per cent – to 70 billion U.S. dollars, and the challenge now, is to keep the momentum going."

China currently takes around 25 per cent of all Māori exports, and both cultures are committed to building long-term relationships.

STEVEN RENATA, Kiwa Digital Managing Director "Understanding the people, their whakapapa, their genealogy first, their connection to the land, and then progressing from there into how we might come together – to work together."

And Professor Mika believes that Māori exporters can unlock more business success in China.

JASON MIKA, Māori Business Consultant "We're family in a way, and as family we have responsibilities towards one another, we have a willingness to work together and find solutions that are mutually beneficial."

Exchanging culturally-relevant gifts, like the paddle presented to China's Tourism Minister, also reinforce their shared journey.

PEENI HENARE, Former New Zealand Tourism Minister "And our hope is that when we seek out these new opportunities, like a fish in the water, this will guide us to where we need to be."

Owen Poland, CGTN, Auckland.