Dairy Markets Week in Review
The second week of February saw continued strength in cash cheese with the block price inching higher for the fourth consecutive week, closing Friday at $1.24 per pound, up 8 1/4-cents on the week, but 81 cents below that week a year ago. Barrel closed at $1.23, also up 8 1/4-cents on the week, but 76 cents below a year ago. Twenty four cars of block traded hands on the week and four of barrel. The NASS-surveyed U.S. average block price gained 1.3 cents, hitting $1.1041. Barrel averaged $1.1198, down 2 cents.
Cash butter closed Friday at $1.1025, unchanged on the week, but 10 cents below a year ago. Only one car was sold all week. NASS butter averaged $1.0707, down 0.1 cent. NASS nonfat dry milk averaged 82.07 cents per pound, down a penny, and dry whey averaged 15.33 cents, down a half-cent.
Government price support purchases for the week amounted to 454,997 pounds of butter and 7.7 million of powder, raising the cumulative totals for the year to 4.1 million of butter and 170 million pounds of nonfat powder.
Provided courtesy of Dairyline.