April 2010

The drop to near-zero of official US interest rates makes our currency a bit more attractive. The US is now 'printing money' in a major way, and markets are starting to devalue it because of this. The NZ$ is being kept high from that effect.

Currency shifts other than against the US$ are now growing in importance and you should check the TWI tab in this chart to see the balanced extent of the overall movements.

The international growth situation is now less-negative. But asset values are still being marked down and although the recession may be ending, growth will be anemic from here out.

However, our export products will stay in demand better than industrial commodities, and they have lead us out of our recession. Growth may be weak however, and recent falls in the NZ$ reflects so-so prospects.

The next big influence is the separation of the NZ$ from the AU$ which is being pumped up by the Australian resources boom and the strong Chinese economy. But there are clear signs of a bubble in Chinese real estate markets, and Chinese growth is a bit artificial due to its massive stimulus spending which can't go on forever.

for more perspectives, see

- Exchange rates
- Commodity prices
- Farm cost indexes
- Interest rate trends
- Rural credit aggregates
- Farm sales activity
- International dairy prices

for saleyard and processor price trend graphs, see

- lamb
- beef
- deer
- velvet

for longer-term charts of exchange rates monthly, going back to July 1973, click here >>>

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