New Zealand’s agriculture sector is facing difficult economic conditions, because of low dairy, meat and forestry prices, high operating expenses and increased debt servicing costs, according to a Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) report on Thursday.
In the longer term, the sector faces uncertainty about the scale and timing of the costs of climate change, according to an extract from the upcoming RBNZ Financial Stability Report.
“Whilst defaults in banks’ agricultural lending portfolios are currently low, they are expected to increase and could accelerate if there is a prolonged period of high costs and low prices.—Xinhua
