Food and agribusiness bank Rabobank's quarterly report forecasts a bullish longer term outlook for the beef trade.
But it says volatility and pressure on prices will continue over the next year.
Concern about shortages from New Zealand caused a brief surge in United States' imported beef prices recently.
But a co-author of the report Rebecca Redmond says that is in contrast to what has been happening in the US domestic beef market, where large numbers of cattle have been culled because of drought.
Ms Redmond says New Zealand export beef production is forecast to lift 3% in the 2011-12 season, to 588,000 tonnes.
