THE PRICE OF WOOL.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1232, 9 October 1885, Page 3

THE PRICE OF WOOL.

The year 1885 will be long rememberer! as one of the most disastrous ever known in the history of the Australian wool trad'-. There have been times, such as in 1876, when a serious fall has taken place more suddenly, or when, as in 1869 and 1870, wool has remained at a very low level for a considerable period. But the records of the wool trade during recent years can be searched in vain for an instance in which this staple, in the face of the most sanguine anticipations to the contrary, has fallen so steadily and persistently from the moment of its being bought out here until it has finally passed into consumption at Home. Although wool has been steadily declining in value since June, 1880, the fall was only a very gradual one until the close of last year, when it was about 2d per lb cheaper than in was four years before. Throughout the greater part of the last season in Australia very large quantities of wool changed hands on the oasis of the values ruling in Europe in November and December last. During the first six months of the present year, however, prices have persistently fallen, until at the Jane-Jaly scries they were from 2Jd to 3d per lb lower than at the commencement of the year, while even then prices were only suppose I by tae withdrawal of the unprecedented quantity et 70,000 bales. The fourth series of colonial wool sales opened in Lcndon on Tuesday the Ist nit. In the face of a fact that during a period of extreme industrial depression so enormous a quantity of wool was brought forward from the previous series, no improvement in prices was expected in wool circles our, here. But even the gloomiest pessimist was hardly prepared for so severe a fall as appears to have taken place. The causes of the serious ehemkago in

a I the value of wool which has been going on e are not far to seek, when wool was aelliug e at the high average prices which have been t ruling ever since 1870, its production in 3 new and thinly populated countries like [I Australia and South America was an ex* y tremely profitable occupation. If we except y the last three vears, when the had seasons t have made the squatter’s position a far from j enviable one, there have probably been few 8 I industries in the world which have on the j average given such high returns for the f capital invested in them as lias wool growing f in Australia since 1870. Naturally, there* ! fore, both capital and labor have Been j largely attracted into it, the resnlt being an j enormously increased pio luotion Ten i years ago the total production of wool in Australasia amounted to only 700,000 bales 3 while in the yea" which has just close I it i was no leas than 1,110,000 ba'es, 400,000 t bales having been gained during the last ) decade. Kor have our great rivals in the , River Plato been less active than ourselves. [ Ten yea's ago, in 1875, the exports of wool . from the River Plate provinces amounted to [ equal to 550,000 bales of Australian wool. ; although the final particulars regarding the last years shipments are not yet in our possession, it is estimated that they will be i equal to at least 1,000,000 bales of wool in ; addition to some 60,000 large bales of sbeep- , skins. Australasia and the River Plate alone, therefore, have increased the world’s production during the last decade to equal to about 900,000 bales of wool., Regarding the future of the market there appears to be little hope of any improvei meat until the demands for wool becomes largely, augmented, or until the incessant increase is arrested. As far as the former source of relief is concerned, we have recently expressed the conviction that much might be done to cr«a* e new outlets for wool, and extending existing ones. On the i other hand, we can"" see little ground, even with the present low level of prices, for anticipating that the enormous increase which has been going on for the last fifty years will be permanently arraste 1. Most of the large stations in New 8 ,uth Wales and Queensland, which have been decimated by the drought, are being avain stocked up,

bi •ceding ewes being in strong demand for that purpose. A number of sheep we'O

shipped a few weeks a.o to Kimberley dis» trice of Western Australia, and the Morthera Territory of South Australia, is to bo stocked overland from Queensland. The e a>e many other countries in the world, however. in which wool growing is carried on on ler much less favourable conditions than it is in Australia, and there can be little doubt i hat even the present fall must be to BO.no extent forcing wool out of produc cion.

We have no desire to play the part of Cassandra, lm on the contrary, are always inclined to take a hopeful view of the undoubtedly great industrial future which lies before these colonies. But we should not be fulfilling onr duty if we failed to point out that the fall in the value of our great staple, if continued for any length of time, must have a very serious effect upon the prosperity of these colonies as a whole,— ‘ Argus.’