Sentiment around milk powder prices has weakened somewhat ahead of this week’s GDT auction in New Zealand. Futures prices for whole milk powder (WMP), the key commodity traded on the GDT, have declined in the last week. March, April and May contracts for WMP dropped 5% in price over recent days, which could signal a negative result at Tuesday’s GDT auction. While never set in stone, the futures market for WMP can act as a decent bell weather for buyer sentiment in the dairy market. The futures market can be the best way of gauging how an upcoming GDT auction will play out, particularly as WMP accounts for over 50% of product traded on the benchmark dairy index.