Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Video | Agriculture | Confidence | Economy | Energy | Employment | Finance | Media | Property | RBNZ | Science | SOEs | Tax | Technology | Telecoms | Tourism | Transport | Search

 

NZ commodity prices fall for 6th month in August, ANZ says

NZ commodity prices fall for 6th month in August, as dairy prices slide

By Suze Metherell

Sept. 2 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand commodity prices fell for a sixth straight month in August, taking the index to a 17-month low, led by declining dairy prices, in part due to an oversupply in China.

The ANZ Commodity Price Index slid 3.3 percent last month, and is now 12 percent below February's record high. Whole milk powder dropped 15 percent in the month, paced by a 13 percent decline in skim milk powder and a 10 percent drop in butter prices.

The survey comes ahead of the Reserve Bank's quarterly Monteray Policy Statement next week, where governor Graeme Wheeler is widely expected to keep interest rates on hold, after hiking the official cash rate 100 basis points since March to 3.5 percent. Inflation figures have come in lower than the central bank initially expected on the back of a cooling property market in Auckland and Christchurch, lower growth forecasts and a drop in commodity prices.

Prices for dairy products, New Zealand's largest export, have tumbled some 40 percent at the GlobalDairyTrade auction since the start of the year, causing Fonterra Cooperative Group to slash its forecast farmgate milk payout for 2015 to $6 a kilogram of milk solids, from an inital $7/kgMS, as a build-up of inventory in China dents demand and weighs on dairy prices. Last week New Zealand posted its first monthly trade deficit for the month of July, as the price of logs, the third largest export, dropped some 16 percent in the year.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

Among other export commodities, apples fell 4 percent, kiwifruit slipped 2 percent and sheepmeat declined 1 percent, according to the ANZ index.

Meanwhile, beef increased 13 percent, to a new record high. Aluminium prices advanced 4 percent to an 18-month high and wool prices rose 2 percent. The meat sub-group posted its eight consecutive monthly increase, ANZ said.

Prices for seafood, wood pulp, sawn timber, logs and venision were all unchanged in the month.

The ANZ NZD Commodity Price Index, which shows the price movements in New Zealand dollars, slipped 0.4 percent in August, reflecting the month's 0.9 percent decline in the trade weighted index, which is a measure of the dollar against a basket of New Zealand's major trading partners' currencies.

(BusinessDesk)

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Business Headlines | Sci-Tech Headlines

 
GenPro: General Practices Begin Issuing Clause 14 Notices

GenPro has been copied into a rising number of Clause 14 notices issued since the NZNO lodged its Primary Practice Pay Equity Claim against General Practice employers in December 2023.More

SPADA: Screen Industry Unites For Streaming Platform Regulation & Intellectual Property Protections

In an unprecedented international collaboration, representatives of screen producing organisations from around the world have released a joint statement.More

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.