The Daily News. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1922. THE WOOL MARKET.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 September 1922, Page 4

The Daily News. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1922. THE WOOL MARKET.

At the recent Melbourne Wool Conference the system of allocations appears to have met with general approval, as did the proposals of Sir John Higgins for the stabilisation of .crossbred wool. Besides these evidences of organisation, the arrangement of dates for future sales are being made with the object of concentrating the full strength of the buying interest at each selling centre in rotation, so that so far as the producers’ interests are concerned in regard to marketing wool, all seems to be as favoral le as possible. The one factor that is uncertain, because it depends on the consumers, is the price likely to be obtained, and that, . of course, depends On the state of the demand for the product on the overseas market. At the May auctions in London the tone of the market continued firm for all classes of wool, and the quantities catalogued at subsequent sales held at Liverpool and Antwerp were absorbed at prices on a par with those current in London, but at the June sales competition was less active. The French and Belgian sections of the trade purchased merino wools with freedom, but home trade buyers operated on a smaller scale. A feature of the sales was the good demand for better grades of merinos and superior scoured wools, while inferior and faulty dropped ten per cent. Apparently this indicates a growing demand for a finer class of goods than* have been in demand since the war, a circumstance that points to recovery from acute financial stringency and the recurrence of increased spending power by the middle and upper classes. It also demonstrates that the best goods command the highest prices. It is worthy of note as justifying the action of B.A.W.R.A. that the withdrawal of 20.000 bales from the intended offering in June materially helped towards the recovery of the May position, and assisted in the readier clearance of each later catalogue. This tes-" timony to the wisdom of regulating offerings on the market emphasises the need for organised action on the part of the producers, for the June series of sales is regarded aS a testing time, from which the market emerged strong land sound, a result which must be gratifying to those who have at last taken steps to bring the marjtafc io a satlsfagtosK ccuuiition.Jtj,

is stated that the position is even much stronger than appears on the surface, so there is little to warrant any bearish or pessimistic sentiments, especially as the consumption of wool does not diminish, but tends to increase. Both topmakers and worsted spinners are said to be heavily contracted ahead up to the end of the year, while the piece goods section of the trade continues to improve, the amount of machinery at work is • increasing, and there is a progressive development in export trade by the manufacers, besides which the home demand is better. All this denotes that the general outlook in the textile trade is steadily improving, the abnormal disparities in the conditions prevailing in the raw material market and consuming centres—a usual feature during a period of transition —being now less marked, while business is steadily expanding. Though cross, breds recently suffered a decline, their cheapness is a strong factor behind the scenes, so that competition has improved on the lower basis. There is every indication that the trade in wool has received a decided stimulus, and as cheap money is assisting to restore confidence the outlook for wool has become definitely brighter, probably much more so than would have been the case had the improvement been more rapid or spasmodic. The fact that Yorkshire is already obtaining an increasing quantity of the world’s trade denotes that the future of the wool industry is based on a sure foundation. Apparently the prices of textile goods are not likely to decline, the tendency being more for an upward trend. It would seem, therefore, that the wool growers may confidently anticipate better prices, yet it will be necessary to carefully regulate supplies to prevent overstocking the market, and then the growth of trade will automatically absorb larger quantities of the raw material. The improvement has been long in coming, so that its advent will all the more heartily be welcomed.