THE WOOL CHEQUE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 302, 21 December 1935, Page 8

THE WOOL CHEQUE.

By comparison -with last year's results the first series of wool sales, now concluded, must be regarded as highly satisfactory to the sheep farmer. Not only have prices been maintained firmly at 25 to 30 per cent above the level of twelve months ago, but clearances in each centre have been unusually heavy. Taking the six sales together, the total wool cheque amounts to £1,750,000, which is a million better than the realisation of last December. Several factors have been operating to bring about this improvement, the strongest undoubtedly being the widespread and general demand for wool in all the consuming countries. Japanese and American buying has been a leading influence. Japan is becoming more important every year as a purchaser of the fleece, and America, after a time of exceptional difficulty, is now speeding up her mills once more. Hence the wool market on the demand side is in a healthy condition. What of the supply? Experience at all the sales so far goes to show that the grower is wisely meeting the buyer; wool is being cleared rapidly as it comes forward, and the outlook for the coming sales is therefore statistically sound. Even if present prices do not leave much margin for profit, they at least cover the cost of the great majority of farmers, and yet are low enough to give wool a supremacy over most of its rivals. Given a competitive price advantage and a continued superiority over artificial substitutes its should be assured, but before that happy security is reached the mills of the world must be set in full activity again. Moderate prices for wood now should mean moderately priced clothes later, so demand should be encouraged all round. Meanwhile the sheep farmer has good reason to expect that the prices he is now receiving will be continued, if not improved, as the season advances. More than three-quarters of the wool available still remains to be sold, and there should be no difficulty in obtaining at least as good a return for it as has been secured in recent weeks.