Commodity prices tumble to 21-month low in May
Index fell 4.2% to a 21-month low as rises in kiwifruit prices fail to offset declines in returns for wool and dairy products.
BUSINESSDESK: The ANZ Commodity Price Index fell 4.2% to a 21-month low in May as rises in the price of apples and kiwifruit failed to offset declines in returns for wool and dairy products.
The index, at 260.8, has fallen in 12 of the past 13 months. It is 18% below its peak, while dairy prices are down 28%.
“The ANZ Commodity Price Index took another step down in May, with 11 commodities registering weaker prices and only four price increases being measured,” ANZ economist Steve Edwards said in his report.
An 11% fall in the price of wool to the lowest level since September 2010 was the largest monthly decline in May.
Weaker dairy prices were also a feature. There was a 12% decline in the price of butter, a 9% fall for whole milk powder, an 8% dip for skim milk powder and a 4% fall for casein. Cheese dropped 2%.
Sheep meat prices dipped 6%, while aluminium eased 2%.
Exports of the new season’s braeburn crop helped lift apple prices 12% and kiwifruit was up 7% as the export season geared up. Sawn timber prices increased 1%.
The value of the New Zealand dollar declined in May by more than the fall in commodity prices so the ANZ NZ dollar Commodity Price Index lifted by 0.8%.
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Commodity prices tumble to 21-month low in May
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