WOOL PRICES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 1 May 1940, Page 9

WOOL PRICES

DISSATISFACTION EXPRESSED IN AUSTRALIA. PRICES UNDER APPRAISAL. Criticism continues to be expressed at meetings of Australian woolgrowers at the price at which the Government sold the wool clip to Britain and also with the appraisal system. Resolutions expressing this dissatisfaction were adopted at the annua! conference of the Australian Wool Producers' Federation recently. In his annual report the secretary said the price under the British contract ' was not sufficient to meet the cost of production. The findings of the wool inquiry committee indicated that the price was about id per lb less than the producing cost. This was in normal times, and the position was becoming worse with the increasing costs due to war conditions. If. as had been stated, no contract had yet been signed with the ' British Government, a price should be secured which would ensure for the grower a reasonable margin of profit Some cost increases were inevitable, and no objection would be raised if they were borne equitably by all sections of the community, but the tendency was to throw the burden on unprotected industries, and the wool industry came in for more than its share. The conference urged the necessity for a review of prices for all future clips, taking into account the increasing costs of production. It also recommended a re-examination of wool appraisements to remedy injustices which might have occurred. Many early appraisals were below the real value of the wool, it was stated.