ANZ New Zealand boss David Hisco says the country's biggest bank is working closely with rural customers as falling dairy prices begin to bite, but farmers are better placed to deal with the....

New Zealand dairy farmers are looking down the barrel of a low payout this season, and possibly next season, but Trade Minister Tim Groser says the sector can tough it out.

Sheep meat prices have fallen by about 10 per cent over the past two months, driven by a drop in demand in China and difficult conditions in another important export market - Britain.

Tumbling dairy prices dragged ANZ's commodity price index 7.4 per cent lower last month and a stronger New Zealand dollar amplified the decline.

New Zealand should be the next cab off the rank in securing a free-trade deal with the Gulf Co-operation Council, with Prime Minister John Key "much more positive" about it.

New Zealand commodity prices had their biggest decline since the height of the global financial crisis in 2008, led by falling dairy product prices.

With commodity prices falling, New Zealand's strong economic run is at risk of faltering, writes Liam Dann. Lower export earnings should add urgency to this month's Budget for Finance Minister Bill English.

Business confidence dipped in ANZ's monthly survey but the expectations of firms about their own activity and their hiring and investment intentions remain strong.

Wool prices have recovered some lost ground and are expected to remain steady throughout the year, says ASB Bank in its latest commodities report.

Representatives from the Five Nations Beef Alliance are in Maryland this week pushing for beef trade liberalisation through the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal.

Drought conditions are biting into California's dairy production, which could end up being supportive for international dairy prices, say analysts.

John Key will arrive in Saudi Arabia today with the hope of getting high-level commitment from the new King to a free trade agreement with the Gulf states.

Calfsmart is the brainchild of Ben Neal, a 35-year-old mechanical engineer who grew up on a dairy farm in Dannevirke.

Supplier-shareholders in Australia's biggest dairy co-operative, Murray Goulburn, will decide next month whether to adopt a Fonterra-style capital structure that would involve raising about A$500....

The reduced dairy payout and the high Kiwi dollar are being carefully assessed by potential farm buyers, says the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand.

A Waikato farm development company - Dairy Solutionz - will open a 117ha, 300-cow demonstration dairy in the Narino region of south Colombia tomorrow.

Bluelab Corporation will use a new research and development growth grant to speed up taking a new sensory product to market in the next year.

International dairy prices fell for the third time in a row at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction.

America's appetite for hamburgers has helped to drive beef returns to record highs in the first six months of the export season, says Beef and Lamb New Zealand.

Parts of the South Island have experienced sporadic bursts of rain in recent weeks but Marlborough and Canterbury are still waiting for the big drought breaker.

Fonterra says its milk collection in New Zealand for the 10 months to March 31 reached 1431 million kg of milk solids - 1 per cent higher than for the same period last season.

The rural property market has remained remarkably resilient in the face of lower farm-gate prices and dry summer conditions, with prices - by some measures - returning to pre-global financial crisis....

International dairy prices look likely to head lower at this week's GlobalDairyTrade auction, according to futures market pricing.

The kiwi nearing parity with the Australian dollar is causing concern for New Zealand tourism operators, but nobody's pressing the panic button yet.

Units in the Fonterra Shareholders' Fund fell to their lowest point since listing on the NZX in 2012 on the back of growing farmer and investor unrest.

It takes a gallon (3.785 litres) of water to produce an almond, and almond growers use about 10 per cent of California's water supply every year.

Sanford, New Zealand's largest listed fishing group, is in consultations with 232 staff who look likely to lose their jobs at the company.

The end of the European Union's quota system poses a challenge to New Zealand's dominance of global dairy trade and is likely to put an end to the sharp upward spikes in prices seen in the past, says....