LONDON WOOL SALES

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2960, 26 December 1916, Page 8

LONDON WOOL SALES

MERINOS AGAINST THE BUYER

__ (From Our Special Correspondent.)

' ' London, November 2. \ The sales are making excellent progress, and the only regret the writer * s '^ a t there is not more good 6hafty merino wool available. Buyers to-day do not care one jot or tittle from what State it emanates providing something good is obtainable, and the wools of South Australia would bo as much preferred as any. Their well-known, sound combing characteristics, being deep grown, and usually of' good length, appealing to buyers to-day in a most remarkable manner. One wellknown frequenter of Coleman Street .Wool Exchange said to the writer this week that it .doe?, not matter what wool it is, whether merino or crossbred, grease or scoured, everybody wants length. Ho simply, meant that the trade is searching eagerly for something showing good combing characteristics, and one regrets very much that there is not more of this wool available. Of course, we have been in the present hole before, but it can bo truly said that the trade faMay is completely on the top of supplies, or what we used, to say before the war, everybody on the sheep's back, trying their ■utmost to obtain something of a useful nature. No doubt the great law of supply and demand is operating to-day as it never did before, and we are satisfied that present prices are being entirely dictated by it, the-force of which is recognised more completely than ever before. The sales, this week have again been well attended, overy sitting has passed off splendidly, and there is no slackness'in the call, for wool.

Merinos tho Turn Dearer. The week has produced nothing great in merinos; in fact, to find a straight line of new combing wools is tho exception and not tho rule. Last Tuesday tho Otikwood olip was offered and sold splendidly, realising up to 3s. 7d. for the grease combing. It showed good 7fl's quality, nico length, and was a most attractive parcel. It only shows what the trade is prepared' to pay when anything decent comes' along, and to.day these wools must be called mosjly 7| per cent., and sometimes even' 10 Yer cent, above last series. It is the writei's firm conviction that good greasy wools are selling relatively better than scoureds, but really speaking thero is nothing very brilliant being offered in the scoured state, the best wools so far being the well-known Gibb -brand of skin wools from. Melbourne. It is certainly too early to see submitted a good string of station scoured Queensland wools, these being the most favoured by Russia. But then it as well that these wools are hot here to-day,' because the Archangel port is now closed, or at least it will be ice-bound by the time wool dispatched to-day arrives there, 'consequently the turn of the year will be> soon enough to see to hand'a good string of station scoureds. , A fact worth mentioning is that France is buying more medium grease merinos than for some time, a pjoof that more 'combing machines are being got to work. -Of couree, this is very acceptable, and one rejoices that our neighbours across tho Channel are m better buying form. Yorkshire topmakers are keen as mustard, and their operations extensive, while the prices paid are certainly of the best. This is a feature which one must recognise as satisfactory, and to-day no one seems particular about Id. per lb., so long as the wool suits their purpose, because they must have it.

As showing -the temper of Yorkshire manufacturers, the writer received a buying order at the commencement of this k week, the 1 manufacturer statin? expresaly that lie must have the. wool, which must be sound, therefore buy, and do not bo' particular about Id. That clear-, ly shows that to make Army clothes today,, overy piece of which has to bo tested dt the Bradford Conditioning House, a wool sound and shafty must be used. We call to-day good shafty wools at least lid. above last sales, and there are some who are sanguine enough to believe that the top to values has not yet been reached. Of courso, prices are benefiting because of the very short and limited supply. This is recognised by all, and it is becoming more apparent to everyone that Great Britain and her Allies are ablo to lift ill prospective supplies of combing wool from Australia and New Zealand. That seems to be a. question which is becoming more and more settled, and the trade is recognising that present and prospective needs are such that they will have to be provided for, and so long as America is practically scooping the pool in South Africa, Australian merino supplies must be largely preserved for tho British Empire and her Allies.

Scoured wools aro fetching very good figures, and no fault can be found on that scoro. Of course, there is not the same supply oven of faulty merinos that one saw last series, and all offerings are Teadily'-absorbcd. Theso seem to selLji little irregularly, particularly tho most faulty parcels, but apart from that, anything at all decent is selling at exceedingly good values, and jnaking 5 per cent, more flian last series. One has only to point to the 3s. lOd. realised for the. top line of Gibb merinos to show that big figures aro still forthcoming, and the most remarkable fact of all is that these prices are being paid on Home trade account aud not by Russia. Russia is a comparatively quiet customer, and nobody is sorry, because at a time like the present, wlien .Home trade topmakers want wool, it is as well for our Ally to remain more or less in the background. Good shafty pieces are selling exceedingly well, and are easily making Id. to lid. moro than last eeries. Of course,. nothing is bought on American account, nor is the embargo at all likely to bo removed so far as London is concerned. As a matter of fact, values will have to get even less in Australia' before America is granted tlie privilege of buying faulty carbonising parccls. The writer has always favoured tho view that the United States cannot bo kept out of the market for over, and probably a move towaids granting tho privilege to buy will bo made when the second half of tho season in tho colonies commences. Crossbreds Soiling Remarkably Well. The catalogues have been filled largely with crossbreds, chiofly 6lipes, and the way these aro being absorbed is indeed remarkable. Since writing last we bolieve record values have been paid for slipod halfbred lambs, 2a. 6d. per lb. boing to-day high-wator mark. Of i course, these lambs will bo largely sort-

Ed by Bradford topmakcrs, and then combed into SB's tops, tbo sharp rise that has taken plaeo in Bradford for 56' a and sS's no doubt being responsible for tho increase that has been paid, if we come to three-quarter-bred lambs, these, too, aro making mostly Jd. to Id. jnoro than last series, and the sarno must bo said for deep or coarse wools. Of courso, as we remarked a week ago, sliped wools to-day are uow of carding length, they are really too 10% for woollon manufacturing purposes, and, therefore, topmakors are having an innings. Tlicy aro compelled to purchase those entirely because of the lack of greasy iloeco, for overyono knows that thero can bo no woight of these to hand until I'ebruary at the soonest. It is a good thing that tho trade is hungry.foj; crossbreds, otherwise 6lipes would have inevitably fallen, but it looks as if there is sufficient buying power still left to lift practically all the crossbreds from New Zealand.

for tho small quantity of .greasy fleece which is being ofl'erod, the demand is oxtromoly' keen, and the full opening advances aro being made quite easily. Wo now seo tho top side of 2s. paid, for suporior lines of fine fleeces, and there is certainly hero no hesitation whatever in paying these prices. Medium crossbreds are very firm at a full Id, advance, and the same must be said for coaise prepared wools. In fact, very seedy shabby parcels aro 'selling at Is. sd. to Is. Gd., which two series ago could easily lie picked up at Jg. 3d. It is all the outcome of the Russian khaki orders, and tho small stocks of , greasy fleece wools which apparently are all wanted. We understand that the French Government aro buying good fine lialfbreds, this extra confpetition no doubt being responsible for lifting values. All these factors go to prove that a strong market gor greasx crossbred fleece is being experienced, and there seems to bo nothing to arrest the upward tendency ,of values or to limit operations of wool buyers. . Scoured crossbreds considering tho quantity ojlered are also meeting a firstclash market, and last week's advances aro also in evidence. Thero seems to bo a stronger market for fine halfbreds, at least anything from 50's upwards is selling freely, and. certainly making most satisfactory prices.. The sales this week have been largely red hot, and a better spirit and. tone lias seldom been seen in Coleman Street Wool Exchange than obtains to-day.