MarketWatch
Very positive post-holiday sentiment in the EU also supports prices in other markets
This time of year when the Southern hemisphere is just about to kick things into gear, export competition is usually what's driving the direction of prices. The US still produces more than what its own market needs, at least in the “fat-heavy” products because more and more proteins remain inside the domestic market. Oceania is working hard on their sales ahead of the milk volumes to come, and up until recently the EU also required a decent export performance to balance its domestic market. However, whether it is the direct impact of several heatwaves on EU milk production, the quality of winter sileage or strong local EU demand is unknown, but when buyers returned from holidays, offers where suddenly scarce and EU manufacturers felt much less pressure to sell. We will see if this sentiment sustains, but at the moment it seems like the EU may be less of an active contender in the export game than many assumed before the summer season.