WOOL SALES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 210, 6 September 1939, Page 6

WOOL SALES.

SUSPENDED IN SYDNEY/ UNCERTAINTY THE CAUSE. Writing of the wool trade in Australia as at August 29 Messrs. Winchcombe, Carson, Limited, of Sydney, state: — j The decision to suspend the opening of the Sydney wool sales for a week was made because of the present international uncertainty. Those concerned were laced with the question of risking meeting a curtailed demand with probable ill-effect 1 on values. A week hence conditions may be more settled. It would certainly be disadvantageous to start a selling season with a. receding market. I Trading development from January to July and the stability displayed by values had to a considerable extent restored confidence among customers. Those concerned in the sale of the sheep's staple' desire to hold that hard-won ground. Tension in Europe has been the hindrance to a keener, general demand for Merino tops, yarns and fabrics for civilian pur-, poses. As far as crotssbreds are concerned,: it Jia£ increased the use of them for uniform purposes and caused prices 'to rise.! Rates for medium crossbred tops in Bradford are fully 60 per cent higher than dur-] ing the depression years, and Merinos about 25 per cent. To generally flourish, commerce needs definite indications of permanent peace. Uncertainty creates nervousness. In view of the present situation any attempt to anticipate the course of wool values is futile. Events can rapidly change the outlook for better or worse. . We hope the former will be experienced. Statistically wool is favourably situated, but the trend of trade , definitely depends, upon . international ' circumstances. For the year endi«g, May, '<Jeman imports of wool from alt 'sources were approximately equivalent to 1,050,300 bales, an increase of about 125,000 bales on the total tor the preceding similar period. Apparently heavy stocks of the raw material have not been accumulated. Activity in the German mills lias been brisk for her own internal trade, and for the first live months, of this year her exports of yarns were more than twice j the quantity exported in that period of I 1938. Prior to 1914 Germany imported j about 1,600,000 bales annually, but the quantity since lias not reached that level, j The reduction has been chiefly caused by the lesser quantities required because of the use of artificial fibres, but the loss of mills in Alsace-Lorraine after the Great A\ar also decreased her requirements. Poland, though not one of the world's great wool using nations, is a fairly important consumer. Her imports in 1938 from all sources were about 167,000 bales; of which 33 per cent was obtained in Australia. She imports yarns from various European countries, her larpest purchases being made in Germany. She exports moderate quantities of woollen fabrics to China and other Eastern countries and throughout Europe. The Polish mill industry, therefore. lias ramifications which exert a wide influence.

ANTWERP FUTURES. (Received 11 a.m.) LONDON", September 5. The Antwerp futures market is firm. Quotations for 61 dry conxbed tops are as follow:—September, 22d; Dec-ember, 23? ad; March, 23% d.