KEY POINTS:
Hot weather and a high dollar have caused farmer confidence to drop for the first time in a year, according to the latest Rabobank/Nielsen Confidence Survey.
The survey, conducted in December, showed 34 per cent of farmers expected the rural economy to improve, down from 49 per cent in the previous survey, while the number expecting conditions to get worse rose to 22 per cent, up from 10 per cent.
The decline in confidence was the first recorded in a year, although Rabobank New Zealand senior analyst Hayley Moynihan said the level of confidence was still higher than a year ago.
"The weakening in farmer sentiment is likely to be a reflection of the combined pressures of a persistently high New Zealand dollar which has been dampening returns from exports, the ongoing increase in key input costs and the prospect of a long, hot summer reducing feed availability for many regions," Moynihan said.
