Milk prices fall 1.2% and volumes dip 2.3% at latest Fonterra auction

International milk prices fell in the second auction this month and volumes dipped in the sale held by New Zealand’s Fonterra Co-operative Group.

Fonterra’s GDT Price Index dropped 1.2%, with an average selling price of $5,016 (€3,650) per tonne, in its latest auction.

The decline followed a 0.5% jump in the previous sale, said Fonterra.

A total of 34,568 tonnes was sold, falling 2.3% on the previous auction, the co-operative said.

The auctions are held twice a month with the next one due on March 4.

The auction results can affect the New Zealand dollar as the dairy sector is a major export earner for the country and generates more than seven percent of gross domestic product.

The New Zealand milk co-operative, owned by around 10,500 farmers, controls nearly a third of the world dairy trade.