Bank's desire to be part of the solution
ASB says the decision to sign on to the AgriZeroNZ joint venture came out of a wish to be a part of the solution.
The Global Dairy Trade lift overnight of 2.6% is broadly in line with expectations, says ASB rural economist Nathan Guy.
The overnight lift was the third auction out of the last four to record a price lift.
However, by product the auction was more mixed relative to expectations, he says in his 'Quickview' outline.
"Key WMP prices rose bang in line with expectations, while the anticipated jump in SMP prices was absent (futures prices had hinted at a lift in excess of 5%). Instead, SMP prices actually fell 0.9%.
"Elsewhere, butter milk powder (up 16.2%) and anhydrous milk fat (up 4.9%) regained some of their recently lost ground. Butter prices posted a 3% increase, while casein (up 0.3%) also lifted marginally. Cheddar (down 0.8%) was the other main product we monitor to post a fall."
In terms of the price outlook, the auction result is somewhat moot given this was the smallest auction for the year, he says. ASB is sticking to its $3.90/kgMS forecast for 2015/16.
Attention now quickly turns to 2016/17. Fonterra provides its new season forecast next Thursday. And while we expect the milk price to ultimately end at $6/kgMS, Fonterra's starting point forecast for the season will be much lower.
The Commerce Commission says connectivity options for rural New Zealanders are front-of-mind as it begins a formal investigation into the future of the copper network.
Grand Finalists have been selected, all regional finals have concluded, and the journey towards the FMG Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final is underway.
Hopes of NZ sheepmeat prices picking up anytime soon in the country's key export market of China looks highly unlikely.
Regional councils are welcoming the certainty for councils in today’s Resource Management Act (RMA) announcement by the Government.
ASB says the decision to sign on to the AgriZeroNZ joint venture came out of a wish to be a part of the solution.
Federated Farmers says changes announced to the Resource Management Act today mark the end of the war on farming.
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