New Zealanders are evenly divided about whether farmers are moving quickly enough to reduce their impact on the environment, a Herald DigiPoll survey shows.

Here we are again, hearts in our mouths, as we watch an international commodity slump knock the shine off New Zealand's economic recovery.

The NZ dollar rose to a six-week high against the euro after the European Central Bank unexpectedly cut its three key interest rates.

Dairy product prices dropped to the lowest level since July 2012 in the latest GlobalDairyTrade auction, led by a slump in rennet casein and butter milk powder.

New Zealand commodity prices fell for a sixth straight month in August, taking the index to a 17-month low.

New Zealand's terms of trade held at a 40-year high in the second quarter, as a high New Zealand dollar pushed down the price of imports, offsetting a decline in exports.

We're eating more fresh fruit and vegetables, visiting supermarkets more often, spending more and seeking more self-service checkouts, says a supermarket boss.

National is trying to position itself as the only party which will deliver major free trade agreements, saying that Labour's trade policies will be scuppered by any potential coalition partners.

The New Zealand dollar weakened overnight, weighed down by a rising US dollar and changing expectations for Reserve Bank interest rate rises.

Falling prices for dairy and forest product exports drove the trade balance into the red last month.

Viewed from the vantage point of Standard & Poor's global chief economist the world economy does not seem too inhospitable a place right now, but not without risks either.

The New Zealand dollar took a sudden and unexplained dip in early trading yesterday, fuelling speculation that the Reserve Bank may have chosen to exploit thin trading conditions.

Listed retirement giant Metlifecare is tipped to be trading cheaply, well below its peers even after a good financial result out yesterday.