LONDON WOOL SALES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2833, 26 July 1916, Page 10

LONDON WOOL SALES

—. MORE SATISFACTION FOR GROWERS (From Our [Special Correspondent.) London, June i. the present is a wonderful time, affecting as it does the whole trade from the grower to the actual consumer. Wo have been officially informed that nn embargo has new been placed upon wool in Australia,' shipment only being possible to Great This shows that everything is being seriously influenced by war, and the present'move is undoubtedly the outcome of the cry of shortage which has been • raised persistently during the last two months. Many "people have hailed wijh delight the imposition of such an embargo in Australia, but the writer is not so confident as some that it will be beneficial in the interests of growers. No doubt it has been primarily done for the purpose of preventing America and Japan from making an onslaught upon the remaining supplies, and while it can hardly be said to bo a hit against Japan, there is no doubt that America has made the pace exceedingly keen for English buyers, and we now find that the lid has been properly put on, and that henceforward shipments are only- possible to the United Kingdom. Developments in the wool trade will now. be awaited with .considerable and we shall .look oh with just a little concern to see whether such a move will affect values in; a downward direction. It is. certain that. everybody is wanting cheaper ■ wool; Of course, tho London sales this week have provided nothing of that nature, it being as yet too early to see what effect the embargo will ultimately have upon prices, the primary intention of such a development being to increase supplies.

Opening Sales in Coleman Street. The whole trade was fully represented in Coleman Street Wool Exchange, the event being the opening of the fourth series of sales. Nothing untoward happened, there being the usual large number of buyers and also spirited bidding, which everybody expected. Buyers came together in a very .optimistic mood, everybody realising the importance of the event. The interval has been gratifying to the majority in the trade, and instead of a setup state of affairs, a good deal of vim - 'characterised the initial- sitting. An active interval always ensures an exceedingly good series of sales, and one has only to see how values have risen' to realise that great confidence must prevail among consumers, for whereas in March'3s. 6d. would easily have bought a. good 64's top, fully Is. has since been .realised. In fact, the movement of merinos has certainly been a remarkable one,-and the position" shows extraordinary strength. It simply means that all prospective supplies are going to be wanted by users, and as far as' one can sec merinos bid fair to maintain their position nntil supplies become" very much larger' than they are today. Crossbreds have 1 moved much moro slowly, in fact, there seems to bo no keen desire on the part of users to force values higher, their wish being to prevent the forthcoming English clip being forced to excessively high limits. However, a good deal depends upon the ultimate outcome of tho current..series of sales for fixing a' standard of values for the English new clip,' and nobody is keen at present' to force the" pace unduly. The consumption of erossbreds is running on similar lines' to merinos, and as far as one can see; there is going to be tho keenest demand for the finest classes, medium and coarse being on' the slow side. .Quantities Available. Many people have , expressed surpnso at the very small quantities which are available for a. fourth series of sales, and well they might. Of' course, tho rapid sale of the current colonial clip is the chief reason for such a small quantity being available in Coleman Street foiv a Juno series, there being only 60,500 bales available. This is,..the smallest on record forthis time of the O'ear. A very different slate" of-affairs obtained for the corresponding, series, a year, ago. If moro wool could be staged daily- -very work could be made of each series of sales,' but- there, are.not tho hands to stage' more than 8000 bales daily, consequently it Hakes', a/considerable time to dispose, of a email quantity of wool. The offerings are about-"' evenly divided between merinos and erossbreds,. and we fully expect from this time onward to see merinos largely composed of secondhand parcels, and-.,a .scrappy lot at that. The following shows the quantities available for.rthe: fourth-series'of sales, the gross arrivals,- the wool'forwarded- direct, the net total available, and the quantity of: New Zealand wools—mostly crossbreds —included in the total, all.being given: ■Net ,-. ' ■"■ Gross forwarded ' quaiiarrivals, direct, '.N.Z. tity. ■ .-. ...Bales... Bales. Bales. Bales. 1916 .... 112,000 88,300 29,300 ' 60,500 1915 010,400.310,000 129,700 232/100 1914 .... 286,01)0 111,600 100,700 116,500 1913 .... .255,600.127,500 107,000.171,000 1912 .'..:■ '194,700' '217,000 152,200 267,700 1911 .... 237,500 101,000 103,000 175,500 1910 .... 285,150 155,500 89,300 155,000 1909 .... 275,000 135,000 85,300 150,000 1908 -....'311,500 .75,000 127,600 271,500 A Splendid Opening. There were two sellers on the opening day, the catalogues containing average , wools both in merinos and crossbreds. A belter offering of merinos would have been acceptable, but supplies chielly consisted of U'est Australian produce, mostly farmers' lots. 'The crossbreds on tho Whole made a better show, and certainly sold exceedingly well. The tone of tho sale room could not possibly have bvyi better, tlieie being oiten a wild sceuo cf excitement when the merinos were being sold. ■ -Analysing the opening results, good combing merinos generally appreciated 7i to 10 per cent., liiany putting the advance straight out at a lull 10 per cent. We are rather inclined to think that ithese individuals- forget the extreino prices that were paid during the last few nights of the third series, and whereas Is. 9«d. to Is.' lOd. was .then paid for West Australian combing wools, Is. lid. to Is. lljd. was forthcoming last Tu'en. day for anything showing decent length. Medium merinos appreciated 5 to 7i per cent., and even faulty wools, particularly bulky pieces, when scoured again, advanced a full 2d. There seems to.be no limit to the purchasing power of tho trade in regard to merinos, and users apparently can pay any price.

Orossbreds went very much as expected, fine qualities, particularly sG's and Mi's, sold in harmony with merinos, the advance here being covered foy about a penny. We could not: seo any improvement, in medium and coarse qualities, though they sold'readily enough. . Finn slipes also appreciated a penny, and scoured crossbreds from New Zealand easily made 2d, to 2kl.' more than last series. The initial sale passed off remarkably well, and succeeding sales have fuly endorsed the opening advanue. Everything points to a short and sharp series, with current values fully maintained. • ■ ' The Outlook. Referring to the outlook, Messrs. H. Dawson and Co. say: "The continued advance in the value of merino wools lias become so seriously- persistent- that it begins to cause grave apprehension throughout the industry. The causes have been previously pointed out, and are- well enough known. Unfortunately, the scarcity is greater than expected, and is accentuated by the fact that 'the quantities available, are likely to consist mainly of the inferior sorts—the best combings having foeen^ largely sold in the colonial markets. The embargo announced on Urisbane exports may help to remedy the. trouble in a few months; but, meanwhile, the shortage is too acutely felt in the Home markets, as tho prices of to-day indicate. It seems impossible even under war conditions thatsuch unprecedented inflation, if long continued, can do otherwise than tend to check consumption and encourage cheaper substitutes. It. is also probable- that this factor may Hud allies in other forcus, such as shortage of labour and tho lessened buying power of tho sovereign, which must in time all contribute to check this upward movement.

Up lo now crossbreds have not moved up in sympathy, and begin to look relatively cheap. The supply has been more plentiful, and the demand during the past interval has been somewhat disappointing, considering tho large hosiery orders which had been placed by the Government. It looks as it under I lie new arrangement spinners are hot 6o

eager to cover their requirements in raw materia!. Another factor which keeps crossbreds steady is the prospect of the English clip-being available for Home consumption, seeing that there u now a. complete embargo on exports to neutrals. There are indications, however, that the high price ■ of merinos ■is increasing the call for the finest erossbreds, especially in SB's to 58's sorts. "The wool census which was taken yesterday by the Government—together with the recent census of machinery and its capacity throughout the woollen industry—should provide interesting and most valuable information. It is to bo hoped that the results may bo eventually reproduccd'iu the Board of Trade Journal for the guidance of the trade. Many theories are exploded by the hard, penetrating facts of statistics, and some surprises may be forthcoming. Meanwhile the trade "latterly may be said to have re«olved itself into committees to protect the varying interests, and to give, where desired, advice to the Government. The main point on which there seems lo be unanimity, and which has b»en well voiced, is that the restrictions on the exports of wool should, if possible apply equally and simultaneously in all markets of 'the Empire. Meanwhile, everybody, and especially those who have 'purchases on United States account, still held in New Zealand and London without licenses,-will Hope that next season clear pronouncements _ may be made so as to avoid these misfortunes." '