NZ bank exposure to dairy farms will weigh on asset quality amid low milk prices, Fitch says

Fri, 05 Jun 2015

By Tina Morrison June 5 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand banks' exposure to dairy farming will put their asset quality under pressure as milk prices fail to recover as quickly as expected, according to credit rating agency Fitch Ratings. Auckland-based Fonterra Cooperative Group last week cut its forecast milk payout to farmers for the 2014/15 season by 10 cents to $4.40 per kilogram of milk solids, the lowest level in eight years and down from a record $8.40/kgMS the previous season. It set its opening forecast for the upcoming 2015/16 seaso...

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