Exports of New Zealand goods last month were down by 6.9 percent from February last year, although the country still maintained a trade surplus as imports dropped almost by the same rate, the government statistics agency announced Monday.

The fall in exports of 267 million NZ dollars (218.24 million U. S. dollars) in February was driven by falls in exports of crude oil, aluminum, and dairy products, according to Statistics New Zealand.

A statement from the agency noted that crude oil tended to be exported in large, irregular shipments.

"The fall in exports in February appears to have been affected by the timing of large value shipments of some goods," industry and labor statistics manager Neil Kelly said in the statement.

"Anecdotal evidence also suggests that industrial disputes may have had an impact, due to delays in the loading of some goods. We expect this picture to become clearer when March month and quarter data are fully available. Given these factors, movements in February values should be treated with caution."

Imports of goods last month fell by 244 million NZ dollars, or 6.6 percent, compared with February 2011.

The fall could be attributed to the "one-off importation of capital goods in February 2011" and the possible effects of industrial disputes.

New Zealand saw a trade surplus of 161 million NZ dollars, 4.5 percent of exports, last month, while the year to the end of February had a surplus of 621 million NZ dollars, or 1.3 percent of exports.

The main falls by export destination last month were: Japan, down 42 percent, led by aluminum and aluminum articles, and crude oil; Australia, down 11 percent, mainly due to a fall in crude oil; the Chinese mainland, down 15 percent, led by unsweetened whole milk powder; Chinese Taiwan, down 33 percent; and Thailand, down 31 percent both led by falls in milk, powder, butter and cheese.

Egypt recorded the largest increase, up 32 million NZ dollars, or "several times" the value of February last year, led by milk powder, butter, and cheese.

Imports in February were down from the United States, by 39 percent due to the one-off imports of capital goods in February last year; Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait, all due to decreases in the value of crude oil: China, down 4.5 percent led by a range of commodities; and Brazil, down 68 percent, due to cane raw sugar.

A long-running industrial dispute at the Ports of Auckland, one of New Zealand's major trade gateways, has seen the port closed for long periods and ships diverted to other ports to load and unload cargoes.