The Wool Market

Feilding Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 93, 16 October 1896, Page 2

The Wool Market

v Mr Blundel, local manager of the Bank of New Zealand, supplies us with the Bank's London wool report, dated 2nd September, as follows :— Since last report the trade for both the raw and manufactured article has remained very quiet. In Bradford, the central market in this country for Colonial wool in second hands, the demand has been entirely restricted to the immediate wants ot manufacturers. The con-> , sumptive requirements are, however, about equal to the supply and values consequently kept fairly steady. It would now appear that the deficiency in the Colonial clip for last season is much less than was formerly anticipated, and the market will not now be influenced by any fears that the supplies for the remainder of the year will fall short of trade requirements. The fact that about 300,000 bales will be available for the ensuing bales dispels all hope of the demand being assisted any longer by such considerations. The position of the trade is in such a sensitive condition that very little influence either for or against it would immediately cause values to go up or down. Under these circumstances it is impossible to foresee with the slightest degree of certainty how prices are likely to go on when the next series opens on 22nd September. It is generally at the two closing series of the year that the continential buyers bring their " bear " tactics into play with the object of keeping down prices at the Australian sales. Whether anything of this nature is to be witnessed remains to be seen. It will to a great extent depend upon whether the demand from other quarters will be sufficiently strong to counteract any such attempts. The system followed by these speculators is either to depress yalues in the Colonies at the beginning of the season or to inflate them here later on in order to sell their Colonial purchases at higher prices than they paid for them. (Per Press Association.) Melbourne, October 15. At the opening sale of wool for the season there was a large attendance of buyers, but a heavy fall in prices, though there was very vigorous competition. Merinos show a decline of 10 per cent, broken and pieces, 7£ ; and crossbreds 5 to 7£ per cent compared with the early sales of last season. Purchasers are evenly distributed between English, Continential j and local buyers. The Americans are | Quiescent.