New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said yesterday that she hoped to begin talks "in the coming months" on forging a free-trade agreement with the European Union, the country's biggest trading partner after Australia, reports AFP from Paris.

"I believe an EU-New Zealand FTA presents an opportunity to conclude an agreement that is a model for progressive and inclusive trade," Ardern said after talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in

Paris.

New Zealand mainly exports agriculture products to the bloc, which said in October that it would fast-track the trade talks by bypassing a risky national ratification process.

Both Ardern and Macron said the talks would take into account environmental and social concerns while being "mutually beneficial".

"Some of the concerns being raised domestically in New Zealand will be similar to the ones raised in France," Ardern said in reference to potential resistance from French and European farmers.