THE WOOL DEAL

Hokitika Guardian, 22 April 1920, Page 4

THE WOOL DEAL

(Per Press Association.)

WELLINGTON, April 21

A letter dated February 16th and sent by the Director-General of Raw Materials, London, to tlio Right Hon. W. F. Massey contains the following passage :

' “I am sorry to say that very eonI siderable difficulty is expected in ear- * rying out arrangements to lift the | whole of the Australian and New Zealand wool before the end of the year, Steamers carrying meat and wool are experiencing very great delay in the Thames and elsewhere in British waters very largely owing to the difficulty in dealing with meat. The carrying power on steamship linos working between New Zealand and Australia is thereby reduced by at least 20 per cent., and they are finding it impossible to deal with the cargo offered for shipment in the two Dominions. It is true that this Department has a contract with the Australian Refrigerated Tonnage Committee, which positively binds their steamers to life the entire balance of the Government’s purchase of wool fibfbre November _3oth. Unfortunately the Shipping Controller intervened to press upon these steamers shipments of wheat which were not specifically contracted for. We are protesting against such interference, but the fact is that as regards 46s wool our market is very well supplied, and as regards the coarser grades of wool, considerable stocks are lying dead on our hands. It is therefore, extremely difficult for us to maintain that shipment of 70,000 bales of new wool per month, largely consisting of mediums and coarse cross-breds which are indis- | pensible, and we are afraid that we shall bo compelled for some months to allow shipments from New Zealand to fall to 40,000 bales monthly or even less. The existing market conditions indicate pretty clearly the probability as regards low crossbreds of a full year’s clip, equal to about 200,000 bales. This is likely to remain in the Imperial Government’s hands, when your next clip begins to be gathered. The timo must surely come when the large masses of people in poverished parts of Europe cannot afford to pay for luxuries and this will provide a demand on a large scale for useful woollen clothing made out of coarse crossbreds, but it must be admitted that the market shows no. signs of such a demand making itself felt. On tho contrary, we hear that in the United States holders of coarse crossbreds from New Zealand and South America are breaking the prices badly in a desperate effort to find an outlet for this dead stock. But they arc not finding that this helps sales, which must bo clear to you that sooner or later tho question must ho faced wliother too much coarse crossbred wool is not being grown in view of the infinitely hotter prices which are now ■ being paid for fine cross-brods.