WELLINGTON NEWS

Hokitika Guardian, 21 November 1929, Page 2

WELLINGTON NEWS

NEW WOOL

(Special Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, November * 18,

Expectations, anticipations, and opinions respecting this year’s New Zealand clip can all. be trusted for we now know the position definitely through the wool sale held in Wellington on Thursday last.- 1 • The general and and well founded opinion 1 fvas thht there would be an all round decline in values compared with those ruling at the last sales of the past season was fully confirmed, but the measure of decline ctf the various grades of wool could not be predicted with any certainty. Brokers and valuers of wool apart from the buyers expected medium, coarse and low crossbreds to fall to the same extent and relatively with other grades, but this expectation was not realised. As a matter of fact these crossbreds made relatively more money than merino'or other fine wools, That is to say the farmer sold his second grade wool to better advantage than first grade. This anomaly is explained by the fact that fashion has, temporarily it is to be hoped, banned wearing apparel made from fine wools, and /the, demand for these at the Wellington sale was very p'oor and values were down by fully 6d per lb. Fortunately there is 1 very little merino wool produced in the Dominion, but this is' no consolation to the grow* ers in the Mnrlborugh district who are responsible for : the bulk of our merino wool production. There wool cheques will be smnller than they were, while In a good many if. not in most cases their land taxes wilUshow an appreciable increase. ■

The importance of New Zealand wool sales may be judged from the fact that the generous seating accommodation provided for the buyers was taxed for there were 80 of them closely packed and most of them will be rushing from one wool sale to another righti up the end of March. All consuming centres were represented at the sale, not in every case by their nationals, but in every case by export wool buyers from Britain and elsewhere.

One Wellington -wool firm in their report stated that the representation covered Great- Britain, the United States, France,- Germany,' Italy, Switzerland, Russia, Japan, Canada,' Australia, and Dominion mills. Whatever strength the market showed, and /it showed some strength for super crossbred hogget wool, was dub to‘rejirOseqtatives of Australia buying finely 1 The buying was really for 1 Baldwin and Patou’s mills in Tasmania. Russia too bought wool, but Germany and Bradford were not as active as they arc accustomed to be| and the presumption is that they ate- waiting i-for the later sales when there -. -would be a greater choice. French buyers were much in evidence throughout .the sale, and when lamb’s wool comes on the market they are certain to be active.

The quality ctf the wuol was not as good as that of previous seasons and it is attributed-to the hard winter. At the beginning of the winter there was a flush of grass, but. cold snaps .and frosts played *. havoc; ;The mortality among young sheep has been considerable, in consequence of the hard winter hogget wool shows some tenderness and the fleeces of older sheep are not as attractive as they were last season, for they are lacking in bloom.' The fleeces are lighter also, and all these factors have' an influence on prices. Had crossbred wool turned but as attractive as that of last season the drop in prices for that grade of wool would probably have been less. The bidding at the Wellington sale was good and at times very animated. It was also well spread giving evidence that those who sat on. the benches had come to buy if they could get what they wanted at reasonable prices. Somewhere about 90 per cent of the offering, it is estimated, was sold, and the withdrawals were mostly fine wools. It is customary to offer the passed in lots to buyers at the reserve or somewhere near it, and a good many sales are thus made, but at the Wellington sale it was found that buyers would not spring on their last bids. The sum total is that the wool cheques for the season 1929-30 will be smaller than in the past season, and contraction in wool cheques means contraction in spending power; This should be borne in mind by the general public.