Qu addressed the opening ceremony, saying that China has become New Zealand's largest trading partner, thanks to the increasingly growing bilateral political trust and closer people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two nations.
Salesa wowed the audience with her "Happy Chinese New Year" greetings in Mandarin. She said that New Zealand boasts over 200 ethnic groups and 160 languages and the Chinese community has become a major ethnic group that adds to the richness of New Zealand society.