Well, that's this market all over, buyer indecision has been punished by the sellers, who have jacked up all the milk powder prices on no supporting evidence from associated indexes.

Skim milk leads the whey (sorry!), up €40 (+1%) and sweet whey has increased commensurately by 1.2% (+ €20), whilst the icing on the cake is fat filled whey, storming €60 higher on scant availability. In other markets, palm oil had a long overdue correction earlier this week, but has regained most ground now, and bean oil has been the weakest leg on CMEX, as beans and meal have chugged steadily higher over the week.

Production is still sitting at six to seven weeks from order to delivery, so there is still nervous support from buyers, which has been rewarded week-on-week, but surely this can't carry on? When it does plateau (again), I still don't see a massive slide in price, so any forward purchasing for essential physical stock shouldn't be too embarrassing for long.

BDC agri is the UK broker for Lacto Production milk and whey powder products.

For further information and prices, contact Greg Dunn on 01206 381521 or g.dunn@blackdiamondcommodities.com