New Zealand's "rock star" economic growth of the past couple of years has been attributed to two things: high dairy prices and the Christchurch rebuild.

Hopes of a more stable world dairy market were dashed yesterday when GlobalDairyTrade auction prices resumed their downward slide.

World prices for a basket of New Zealand's export commodities fell 1.3 per cent last month, with dairy products once more leading the decline.

New Zealand commodity prices fell for a seventh consecutive month to an 18-month low in September, led by declining dairy prices.

Farmers are preparing for an austere 2014/15 season after a major drop in prices at last night's GlobalDairyTrade auction, says Federated Farmers boss.

NZX is offering a new service for the dairy industry to forecast local milk production and calculate milk prices.

Tatua, the small Waikato-based dairy co-operative, did well over the 2014/15 dairy season while its far bigger competitor, Fonterra, did not. The reason - powder.

Liam Dann offers up five reasons for economic gloom and five reasons for cheer.

Dairy farmers face a year of serious belt-tightening if Fonterra's latest milkprice forecast of $5.30 per kg of milksolids comes to pass, agricultural commentators said.

Fonterra has just announced a cut to its forecast farmer payout - from $5.30 a kg of milksolids - down from $6.00.

Fonterra is expected to reveal operating earnings at the lower end of an already published forecast range for the year to July 31 when it reports its result tomorrow.

Danone Nutricia, one of the infant formula companies caught in the Fonterra whey protein contamination scare, says it is still feeling the effects of the incident one year on.

No party in an election campaign has a monopoly on wisdom; most have something important to say.

Dairy farmers in this country can expect to come under financial pressure if milk powder prices remain low and tensions in Europe continue to mount, say economists.

Dairy product prices dropped to the lowest level since July 2012 in the latest GlobalDairyTrade auction, led by a slump in rennet casein and butter milk powder.

New Zealand commodity prices fell for a sixth straight month in August, taking the index to a 17-month low.

Fonterra is pinning its hopes on a tie-up with Chinese infant formula giant Beingmate as it pushes into China's lucrative baby milk market.

Federated Farmers says Westland Milk Products' decision to cut its 2014/15 milk price payout will cause "serious belt tightening" on the South Island's West Coast.

Westland Milk Products, the Hokitika-based dairy cooperative, has overtaken rival Fonterra in cutting its forecast payout to farmers.

Fonterra says it plans to spend about $1.17 bon taking a 20 per cent stake in China's Beingmate Baby & Child to boost its baby formula aspirations there.

Dairy prices appear to have pulled out of their nose dive but economists say it is too early to tell whether the market has stabilised after yesterday's GlobalDairyTrade (GDT) auction.

Dairy prices showed signs of stabilising overnight, with the GlobalDairyTrade main price index slipping by just 0.6 per cent.