ANZ Agri Focus shows boosted timber demand in NZFriday 6 Mar 2026
The wet weather in January and February caused a fair amount of damage across the country, adding to the impact of other storms earlier in the season. For those farms that avoided direct damage, pasture conditions are excellent across the country. Unusually for this time of year, there’s not a single region currently at risk of tipping into drought. There are downsides to the wet weather for some sectors. Warm wet conditions play havoc with crop harvesting and add to disease pressure. South Island grain growers have struggled over the past month, and the horticulture sector will also be keen for a dry run as harvest approaches. In general, grain and horticulture crops look good in the field, vineyard, or orchard, but they need to look good in the bins and packhouses too. Dairy prices have rebounded emphatically since Christmas with the Global Dairy Trade Index rising 19.3% so far in 2026. It’s been a pleasant surprise to see market sentiment turn so abruptly, and accordingly we recently revised our 2025/26 forecast up to $9.50kgMS. This will be the second straight year of favourable weather enabling farmers to capitalise on the high prices on offer. A ‘grass market’ has developed in the buoyant sheep and beef sector. Farmers are motivated to retain stock for as long as possible, adding upward pressure to farmgate prices. This is pressuring processors despite excellent in-market prices overseas due to a general red meat shortage globally. The US Supreme Court ruled the US administration’s reciprocal tariffs unconstitutional, but President Trump has quickly reinstated global tariffs at 15% under a different law. The net result for New Zealand is unchanged: our agri exports face the same 15% tariff, except wood products at 10%. Beef, kiwifruit, and a few other products remain exempt as they have been since November. For forestry, export log prices are little changed at $123/JASm3. Domestic construction activity is starting to recover, boosting sawn timber demand, but prices have yet to respond. View ANZ Agri focus report Source & image credit: ANZ  | ||
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