President speaks to Ardern

Labour Party leader and Prime Minister-elect Jacinda Ardern has received a call from United States President Donald Trump congratulating her on the outcome of the New Zealand election.

‘‘The president was genuinely interested in our election and spoke about the coverage it had received in Washington DC,’’ Jacinda Ardern said of yesterday’s phone call which lasted five minutes.

‘‘We are likely to meet at Apec where I look forward to carrying on talks around our role in the Asia Pacific region, and our commitment to a strong relationship with the United States.

‘‘The president also asked that I pass on his warm regards to the people of New Zealand.’’

The Apec summit will be held in Vietnam during November, with the leaders of the 21 Asia Pacific member economies meeting to discuss issues in the region.

The summit could be tense for Trump after one his first acts in office was to withdraw from the Trans-pacific Partnership (TPP), signed in Auckland last year.

New Zealand has been deeply involved in the closing rounds of negotiations for the TPP11 – it remains the world’s largest free trade agreement, despite the withdrawal of the US.

Leaders involved in TPP11 were hoping to sign the new agreement on the sidelines of Apec, which meant a tight timeline for trade officials to gain concessions while working to hold ground in other areas.

Trump has repeatedly expressed his opposition to freetrade deals.