Thursday, 08 May 2025 11:55

We're OK!

Written by The Hound

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OPINION: Despite the volatility created by the shoot-from-the-hip trade tariff 'stratefy' being deployed by the new state tenants in the White House, farm commodity prices are holding their own.

The crash in U.S. bonds was the only guardrail that seemed to keep Trump's excess in check.

As investors and governments dumped US bonds (Canada and EU countries particularly using them as leverage in the trade war), the greenback devalued, pushing the relative value of the NZD up into the 60s.

Sharemarkets are all over the place and the geopolitical scene isn't great for confidence, to state the obvious.

And yet, as at 2 weeks ago, ASB reported lamb prices up 0.8%, beef up 0.4% and dairy up 2.1%.

And Stats NZ reckons March exports were excellent: dairy up 35%, meat up 34% and fruit up a whopping 74%.

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