Whole milk powder auction prices have slumped to a three-year low amid signs that demand for dairy products is waning.

The average price for whole milk powder fell to $2,864 a ton at the GlobalDairyTrade auction overnight, the lowest since June 2020. The weighted index for whole milk powder dropped 8% from the previous auction, while the index for all dairy products declined 4.3%.

Prices have tumbled almost 40% from a record $4,757 in March 2022 as a weak Chinese economy damps demand at the same time as producers are boosting output. The decline suggests that New Zealand-based Fonterra Cooperative Group, the world’s largest dairy exporter, will reduce payments to its local suppliers this year.

Last week, Westpac New Zealand senior economist Nathan Penny said the ongoing sluggishness of the Chinese economy meant a downtrend in global dairy prices had been sustained much longer than expected.

Penny cut his projection for Fonterra’s milk price for the current season to NZ$7.80 per kilogram of milksolids from his previous forecast of NZ$8.90.

Fonterra has signaled it will pay NZ$8.20 for the previous season.