The ANZ commodity price index has dropped for the second time in 11 months, slipping by the "narrowest of margins" in July.
The index was 0.1% lower, but remained relatively elevated, being 22% higher than a year earlier. The 1.2% drop during June was the first monthly decline in the series since August last year.
Eight commodities recorded firmer prices in July and seven recorded price falls, while wood pulp and lumber prices were unchanged.
Log prices recorded the greatest fall, dropping 6% from the preceding month, while apple prices dropped 5%, dairy product prices eased between 1% and 4% (with the overall dairy component decreasing 2%) and aluminium prices slipped 1%.
Kiwifruit recorded a 7% rise, followed by a 6% rise in wool prices and a 5% rise in beef prices. The price of skins lifted 2%, while seafood, sheep meat and venison prices all lifted by up to 1%.
Overseas, commodities dropped across the board for a second consecutive day on deepening concerns about economic weakness in the US and Europe.
Oil, gasoline, silver and palladium each fell more than 5% as Thursday's session came to a close. Even gold was not immune, dropping $7.20 to settle at $1659 an ounce, AP reported.
Forestry is projected to be one of New Zealand's leading export industries over the next 15 years, with the annual plantation harvest set to double by 2025, ANZ economist Steve Edwards said.
In the 12 months to June, $3.9 billion of forestry-related products were exported, representing 8% of New Zealand's total merchandise exports.
Lumber exports included $1.14 billion of sawn timber and another $360 million of further processed wood, such as fibreboard and plywood.
Logs, as a proportion of total forestry exports, lifted to 44%, the highest in the history of the series.
While the United States was New Zealand's largest export market for lumber over most of the last decade, at one point reaching a third share of all exports, the value of shipments had slipped since the global financial crisis had hit, with its share of exports dropping to 12%.
Offsetting that was an increasing share of lumber exports now being sent to the Asia region, including Japan, China and Vietnam.
