© Dukascopy Bank SA
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- Susan Kilsby, AgriHQ
Dairy product prices in New Zealand rose markedly at Fonterra's auction on Tuesday amid strength of whole and skim milk powder sales, official figures revealed. The GDT Price Index advanced 1.3% to $3,537, up from $3,517 registered at the prior auction that happened three weeks ago. About 21,273 tonnes of dairy products were sold, down from the 22,030 tonnes sold at the preceding auction. The price of whole milk powder jumped 1% to $3,314 per tonne. Moreover, the price of lactose rose 12.4% to $910 per tonne, while the price of butter advanced 4.9% to $4,593. Anhydrous milk fat climbed 4% to $5,765, whereas skim milk powder gained 0.1% to 2,608. Skimmed milk powder witnessed stronger than expected demand. According to the the NZX Dairy Derivatives market, analysts expected prices to fall 6%. Nevertheless, some dairy products performed less successful. The price of butter milk powder declined 7.5% to $2,254 per tonne, while the price of cheddar decreased 3.7% to $3,798 per tonne. Rennet casein fell 0.4% to $6,445 per tonne. The number of bidders participating in the auction climbed to 530 from 526 seen at the previous auction. After the release, the Kiwi moved above 0.7300 against the US Dollar but failed to maintain gains.