Wellington: The weather was awful and the mood of the locals wasn't much better when US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson arrived in Wellington on Tuesday.

US media travelling with Tillerson were surprised by the number of people flipping the bird at Tillerson as his motorcade sped through town.

Rex Tillerson is greeted with a hongi by Parliamentary kaumatua Kura Moeahu and Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee on Tuesday. Credit:Getty Images

New York Times correspondent Gardiner Harris said he had been in a lot of motorcades but even he was taken aback by the negative reaction.

"I've been in motorcades for a couple of years now ... I've never seen so many people flip the bird at an American motorcade as I saw today," Harris said.