THE EASTERN WOOL MARKET.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 482, 13 July 1912, Page 3

THE EASTERN WOOL MARKET.

The Japanese Minister for Agriculture and Commerce is stated by a writer in the Sydney Mail to have recently confirmed the statement that Japan will never become a sheep-rear-ing country. He stated that the matter had been carefully considered and that considerable time and pains had been devoted to the purpose of improving the flocks, but without any tangible result. Experiments covering a number of years have been made. Sheep have been obtained at different times from Australia, America, and England, but the conclusion now is that Japan will have to look to Australia for her stocks of raw material. Pioneering Japanese wool-buyers no doubt foresaw this result, and have been preparing the machine-y for the big trade they anticipated. At present the Japanese support in the Sydney market is a very important factor, and as it develops and widens in the years to come the support of the East will undoubtedly make Australia thn recognised wool centre of the world. The fact that this Eastern demand is not felt in the London market is a strong point in favour of the Australian sales, and as the demand develops growers are not likely to ship their wools past a centre which can boast of a wider range of competing buyers than' any in the Old World. The writer then assumes a prophetic role, when he says that "it may possibly happen that when the trade with China and Japan has been developed the Australian saleß will reach such a state of importance that New Zealand and South African wools now shipped to London will come instead to Australia for sale at a special series in the winter months. That this suggestion iB not altogether visionary is proved by the fact that £outh African growers have already been sending samples of wool here and asking for quotations, and as competition increases and higher values are obtainable in Australia than elsewhere wool Will be attracted here from other producing centres." As South Africa does not appear to bold local sales aB in Australia and New Zealand, it is not unnatural that she should desire to test the Australian market., but whether New Zealand would send wool across to Sydney is another matter. , At any rate, during she winter it £oald only be scoured