Agsafe Weekly Rural Report

Finance: The NZ dollar fell following the announcement of a disastrous GDP result. Two Quarters of negative results constitute a recession, is that where we are heading? Brent Crude is moving around below the $US70/barrel - currently $US67.84.

Wool: Wool prices are at an unsustainable level. Price are up at the latest sales with some renewed interest out of China.

Beef, Sheep & Venison schedules: The meat schedules are trending upwards as spring comes along. Lamb and venison have now cracked the $10/kg barrier and beef schedules are continuing to trend upwards.

Dairy Prices. The g/DT fell 0.8% as predicted. WMP is down 0.8% to $US3790/tn which is concerning. SMP fell 0.3%. The general consensus is that the demand and prices are still strong & there is no concern regarding the forecasted FGMP of $10/kg.

There was a disastrous GDP announcement on Thursday being a negative 0.9%. This will push the NZ dollar down and force the Reserve Bank into some further serious cuts to the OCR. The rural sector continues to underpin the economy while the construction and service industries struggle to get started. There are ways of kick-starting the economy, but the current legislative processes are too slow.

You can hear us live on the radio on Monday morning at 7.35 am with Brian Kelly on Country Sport Breakfast – Radio NZ Gold AM. 792 AM in the Waikato & 1332 AM in Auckland.

Jim’s Weekly Rant:

There were an estimated 20,000 people marching in Auckland last weekend in support of a separate Palestinian state and in support of putting sanctions on Israel that was later supported by a group of clergy that should know better. There were an estimated 1,000,000 marching through London on the same day in support of regaining Britian and saving it from its shift to Islamic law and Islamic political structures. There was also huge support and rallies for the slain Charlie Kirk promoting the freedoms provided by the accepted doctrines of western democracy. The Auckland and London protests were diametrically opposed as the Auckland protesters were supporting the Hamas which is an extreme wing of the Islamic doctrine whose aim is to initially annihilate Israel and then all infidels, which includes everyone who is not a Muslim. The Auckland protesters seem to have forgotten the events of October 7th 2023 where the Hamas forces attacked a music festival inside Israel murdering innocent people, raping women and taking the living as hostages. No one wants the war to continue, but, remember the words of Golda Myer in the 1960’s “If the Arabs put down their guns there would be no more fighting. If the Israelis put down theirs there would be no more Israel.” — Golda Meir and a second Golda Meir quote from 1957, “The only way to eliminate war is to love our children more than we hate our enemies.” Both of these quotes are as relevant today as they were 60+ years ago. The UK protestors are seeking ways of ensuring the basic principles and doctrines of the western civilization are retained as the masses of illegal immigrants that have flooded into the UK and some other European countries are pushing to establish areas where the Sharia (Islamic) Law is promoted. Sharia law is an anathema to western civilization and culture. The mass out-pouring of grief from the assassination of Charlie Kirk has also been interesting as again it is a call to retain the basic values of the “Christian” culture that dominates the western world. It is important to remember that Egypt and other Arab countries are not lining up to take the people from Gaza into their homelands and that is because they don’t want the radicles. It is important to remember that the millions of illegal immigrants in the UK and Europe escaped from tyrannical Islamic rulers to a safer free world, so why should they want to re-create the same system and law in the new country from whence they escaped? You don’t need to agree 100% with Charlie Kirk, but the peaceful approach to debate and his willingness to stand up for his beliefs without anger should be an example to us all. His acceptance of others that he didn’t agree with is part of the values our western culture and this is in contrast to the protesting radicles who seek a confrontational and often violent approach to effect change. An open and honest debate to share the different views is what is required and the truth is always difficult to argue against and I think David Seymores comments about recognising Palestine are valid: “Why would we want to recognise an undefined territory that is holding humans as hostages?” Remember they were taken hostage on 7th October 2023. Political talk-fests don’t always work, but honest conversations with family, friends and neighbours can soon filter through society and ensure we are all well informed and understand the complexities of our world and society in which we live. Where do you stand on these important and complex issues that dominate our lives? Become informed and be prepared to share your views in a non-confrontational way with others. Knowledge is power and the honest sharing of knowledge is strength.