New Zealand-Exports down.

New Zealand import prices rose in the three months ended Dec. 31, boosted by a weaker currency. Export prices gained by less, decreasing the nation’s terms of trade for a third straight quarter.

Import prices rose 3.4 percent from the third quarter, Statistics New Zealand said in Wellington today. Export prices gained 2.5 percent, the fifth straight increase.

The terms of trade index, which measures the amount of imports New Zealand can buy from a fixed quantity of exports, fell 0.9 percent from the third quarter when it declined by the same amount. Economists expected a 3.7 percent decline, according to the median of eight forecasts surveyed by Bloomberg News.

New Zealand’s dollar fell 8.8 percent in the quarter, the statistics agency said, citing the New Zealand Customs Service trade-weighted currency index.

Prices of imported computers and machinery parts rose by a record because of the weaker currency, the statistics agency said. Fuel prices dropped 22 percent. Excluding fuel, import prices would have gained 9.7 percent, the agency said.

Export prices were led higher by cheese, butter, sheep meat and forest products, which gained the most in more than 15 years.

Volumes of exports fell 1.8 percent, a fourth straight decline, as shipments of crude oil and logs declined. Fruit, meat and fish volumes also dropped. Dairy increased 4 percent led by milk powder and cheese.

Import volumes fell 4.8 percent, led by a 27 percent fall in cars and declines in plant, machinery and consumer goods.