THE WOOL MARKET.

Taranaki Daily News, 13 May 1921, Page 6

THE WOOL MARKET.

PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE. According to Mr. James Wallace, of Palmerston North, who has just returned from the Old Country, the British wool market is in a very low state. At the time of his arrival in London, no wool had been bought -for six months, and most of the mills employed in the clothing trade had closed down. The few that were operating were only working part time. Great quantities of Yorkshire worsteds, serges and all classes of suitings were being sold at auction in London. Carpet manufacturers were among the few working full time. Asked if there was a. prospect of wool pric-es righting themselves in the near future, Mr. Wallace said that New Zealand’s products were prejudiced by fashion’s demand for finer wools. When in the process of readjustment of wages and the cost of living the price of clothing came back to normal, people would buy again. It would be possible for the manufacturers to carry on their mills profitably, there would be a keener demand for our wool, and prices would improve. He could not pretend to be a prophet, or to say how long it would Jje before this readjustment took place. “When we arrived in London everybody had got the hump,” said Mr. Wallace in giving an interesting accourft of the period between the lifting of the commandeer and the arrival of colonial produce on the open market at Home. “The colonial banfcs had run dry of money owing to legislation prohibiting the export of gold from New Zealand, and to the fact that the banks had sent all the money to New Zealand in payment -for produce taken under the commandeer. Until colonial produce again came forward and money flowed into the banks, the position would be very acute. I know of one instance in which a firm presented a cheque for £5OOO to a bank, and the manager aMced him to wait a week, as the bank had nothing to pay with. It was very difficult to get money to send British manufactures out to the colonies. The markets were very unstable and varied from day to day. Nobody was buying. Just before coming home, I was told by a bank manager that the position had eased a good deal.”