Police believe a forklift was used in the theft of $225,000 of rare Australian coins from an Australian freight company.

The pallet containing thousands of collectable Australian coins arrived in West Melbourne from China on December 22.

Workers at the freight company's Appleton Road office thought the coins' removal was accidental and did not report the theft to police until New Year's Eve.

The Australian Associated Press reported police believed a forklift was used to remove the pallet from a container and a truck later moved the pallet from the premises.