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World wholesale prices
Updated 18 February 2026
This price series looks at the average wholesale prices of certain dairy products from the EU, Oceania and the USA. It aims to provide an overview of global wholesale price movements which can affect prices closer to home.
Overview
N.B. This page has not been updated with the latest US data due to the unavailability of USDA data.
EU
Milk deliveries in the EU continued the growth in momentum fuelled by low input prices, good forage quality and elevated milk prices for most of 2025.
In January, wholesale price movements of dairy products generally continued to move downwards but there were small indications of recovery in powders.
The WMP price was stable and SMP prices increased by 7.5%. The average price of butter decreased by 3.7% compared to the previous month.
The average price of cheese dropped by 4.1% in January according to the Milk Market Observatory.
Oceania
Milk deliveries in Oceania have seen diverse trends with New Zealand continuing to see strong milk flows this milk year, up by 2.4% in November while Australian volumes remained lower (-2.2%) compared to same period in the previous year.
Average prices of dairy products saw upwards movements across the board. SMP saw the largest increase of 6.8% month-on-month. WMP, butter and cheddar cheese increased by 2.9%, 1.2% and 0.5%, respectively.
World wholesale prices
Table 1. World wholesale prices for butter
| $/tonne | Jan 26 | Dec 25 | % | Jan 25 | Dec 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oceania | 5,396 | 5,333 | 1.2 | 6,838 | -21.1% |
| EU | 4,929 | 5,117 | -3.7 | 7,731 | -36.2% |
Table 2. World wholesale prices for SMP
| $/tonne | Jan 26 | Dec 25 | % | Jan 25 | Dec 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oceania | 2,683 | 2,513 | 6.8 | 2,788 | -3.7% |
| EU | 2,558 | 2,379 | 7.5 | 2,756 | -7.2% |
Table 3. World wholesale prices for WMP
| $/tonne | Jan 26 | Dec 25 | % | Jan 25 | Dec 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USA | 4,064 | 3,995 | 1.7 | 4,965 | -18.1% |
| Oceania | 3,392 | 3,296 | 2.9 | 3,869 | -12.3% |
| EU | 3,575 | 3,554 | 0.6 | 4,469 | -20% |
Table 4. World wholesale prices for Cheddar cheese
| $/tonne | Jan 26 | Dec 25 | % | Jan 25 | Dec 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oceania | 4,679 | 4,654 | 0.5 | 4,850 | -3.5% |
Source: USDA
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