Jun 05, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. World prices for New Zealand's main commodity exports rose for the third month in a row in May, but were sharply lower than a year ago, reports Reuters. The ANZ Bank's commodity price index rose 2.7 percent from the previous month, but was down 28.1 percent on May last year. The monthly rise was driven by higher prices for wool, dairy and sawn timber, offsetting a higher New Zealand dollar. The price of seven categories of commodity rose, the broadest rate of increase in 18 months, two were unchanged and four declined. When translated into New Zealand dollar earnings, the index fell 1.5 percent between April and May and dropped 11.2 percent from a year earlier. On a trade-weighted basis, the NZ dollar gained 7.3 percent between April and May. The index covers price movements in 13 mainly agricultural commodities including dairy, meat, timber and aluminium, which account for around 60 percent of New Zealand's NZ$43 billion ($27.4 billion) annual export earnings.