Papua New Guinea generally has a positive balance of trade, and foreign reserves have grown since 2005. The principal destinations for exports, principally gold and copper, are Australia, Japan, and China. Australia consistently supplied nearly half of the country’s imports in the decades following independence, although that proportion decreased to about one-third in the early 21st century. Gold exports generally brought trade with Australia into surplus. Major imports include machinery and transport equipment, refined petroleum, and foodstuffs.