The international dairy trade has started 2015 on a positive note at this morning's GlobalDairyTrade auction, up 3.6 per cent on last month's auction.

Canterbury is on the verge of a 20th century-style drought with the southern region the driest it has been in a decade, forcing farmers to sell surplus stock and leading to restrictions on irrigation....

Dairy farmers and the Treasury will be looking to 2015 and beyond with some trepidation after a 52 per cent decline in wholemilk powder prices over the past 12 months.

Australian supermarket chain Coles will pay A$11.25 million in fines and costs and potentially far more refunding suppliers for illegally squeezing them for funds.

New Zealand cleaning products company ecostore has signed a deal that will see the company export to South Korea from next year.

Foreign claims on the economy exceed New Zealand investment abroad by $152 billion.

Dairy prices mostly improved at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction, the GDT price index gaining 2.4 per cent.

Fonterra has moved to shore up its supply base by forming a subsidiary that can take in more milk without suppliers having to buy shares in the co-operative.

The medium to long term outlook for NZ dairy farmers remains sound, despite yesterday's payout cut, says rural lender Rabobank.

Fonterra said it had launched a separate milk sourcing subsidiary - mymilk - to grow its market share in the South Island.

Fonterra plans to cut costs and defer some capital expenditure so that an improved dividend can at least partially offset a likely $6b decline in income for the sector.

The industry group DairyNZ estimates that one quarter of dairy farmers will have difficulty paying their bills if Fonterra's reduced farmgate milk price comes to pass.

Fonterra has this morning cut its forecast farmgate milk price payout to its farmers, with its chairman admitted it'll put pressure on farm budgets.

There is one salient comment in the report by Queens Counsel Miriam Dean into the WPC80 incident that ought to give Fonterra's directors and shareholders cause for concern: "A company that is....

A Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement could boost New Zealand's agricultural exports to the other partner countries by up to 13 per cent by 2025, the United States Department of Agriculture....

NZ farmers are facing summer water restrictions in some regions as an El Nino weather pattern develops.

Wholemilk powder prices continued to decline while other products showed signs of improvement at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction.

ANZ's commodity price index fell for the ninth month in a row in November, as milk powder prices hit five-year lows.

Farmers have been increasing their spending on equipment as cash flows were boosted by Fonterra's record payout.

Falling dairy prices have begun to undermine one of the foundations of the economic upswing, rising national income from the most favourable terms of trade.

The group of kiwifruit growers who allege the Government agency Biosecurity NZ was negligent in allowing the disease Psa to be introduced into New Zealand lodged their claim in the High Court in Wellington today.

China's demand for wood products is forecast to continue growing faster than its own domestic production, NZ market data provider AgriHQ said.

New Zealand's posted its largest monthly trade deficit for October in six years, led by a fall in dairy exports to China

Fonterra says it had started a consultation process to gauge interest in a proposed equity partnership trust for its farmers.