Dairy product prices fall in first drop since July

Wednesday 5th October 2016

Dairy product prices fell at the Global Dairy Trade auction, the first decline since July.

The GDT price index fell 3.0 percent to US$2,880, down from US$2,975 at the previous auction two weeks ago. Some 33,937 tonnes of product was sold, down from 35,086 tonnes at the previous auction.

Whole milk powder dropped 3.8 percent to US$2,681 a tonne.

"Average prices were down for virtually all commodities on offer—the exception being butter milk powder—but certain shipping periods were better supported," AgriHQ analyst Susan Kilsby said in a note. "Higher prices were achieved for some commodities with a December 2016 shipping date."

In terms of whole milk powder prices, sales for the December shipping period drew stronger demand with Contract 2 prices lifting by 0.3 percent, according to Kilsby.

At the latest GDT auction, lactose sank 9.7 percent to US$744 a tonne, while skim milk powder fell 3.9 percent to US$2,209 a tonne.

Rennet casein declined 3.7 percent to US$6,574 a tonne, while cheddar weakened 2.3 percent to US$3,430 a tonne, and anhydrous milk fat decreased 1 percent percent to US$4,954 a tonne.

Butter slipped 0.3 percent to US$3,891 a tonne.

Bucking the trend, butter milk powder jumped 9.3 percent to US$2,408 a tonne.

The New Zealand dollar last traded at 72.14 US cents at about 12.50pm in New York, compared with 72.75 US cents at 5pm in Wellington the previous day.

There were 125 winning bidders out of 166 participating at the 13-round auction. The number of qualified bidders rose to 617, up from 616 at the previous auction.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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