OUR ENGLISH WOOL LETTER.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15268, 3 May 1915, Page 2

OUR ENGLISH WOOL LETTER.

KECORD VALUES FOR T EW ZEALAND CROSSBREDS.

(SPECIALLY WRITT EN TOT. ' ; THB PRESS.") LONDON, March 19.

AVool trade interests are once more largely centred in Coleman street, where the third series fcegan last Tuesday. Considering that practically only eight working days elapsed between the close of the second and tho onening of the current series, the attendance of buyers must t» regarded as very goo 3; although it was slightly below what it was at the commencement of tho two previous series. The buying power of tho trade i 6 really amazing, and for all one can tee, the average daily offerings of about 10,(K)3 bales are beins lifted with as mui-h case as if there was the regular number of Belgian, French, and German buyer's present. Is it r,ot astounding in face of heavy imports and two scries already this year, thai; the same set of buyers aro eager to operate again, for the sales this week have shown that there is just as.keei. competition and eagerness to buy? America is hardly shaping so enthusiastically as last series, but when the full facts are known, that -America should operato at ajl is certainly a marvel. One of her representatives stated .to. the writer one. day this week that he feels certain circumstances justify him in snymrr- that United States dealers and millmen have purchased in Australia, at the Cape, and in Enc'ami this season alread" about l>oo.ooo bales of merinos. During the next two months they will h 0 called upon to lift at considerably higher figures than a year ago, the'whole their own domestic clip, hence, he said emphatically, America'could wot go on buying merinos in England at the same rate as see , ) Inst sories. A reliable estimate pu L s the American wools in London to-day at 40.000 bales, and with this weight of wool yet to ship, and with licences for shipping being very difficult to obtain, lie said there is justification for American buyers heing less keen to operate than recently.

MERINOS GAIN GROUND

Every reader is, familiar . with the opening results. Briefly stated, pood greasy merinos realised" prices about equal to the close of last sales, and all average and faulty wools, including good clean sff'i/ods, lost ground a full oTper cent. This caused a little surprise, but values -only tame back to a level which we said all through last series would have been thp standard market ones for all merinos, had the homo trade not been forced by America. However, since the.opening, a distinctly better buying spirit has prevailed, leading to some very retire sales, at hardening values, fhe writer has no hesitation in saying that values are now practically back at the close of last series for almost everything, although the very heavy and faulty merinos which are so uncertain in yield are selling a little irregularly. Medium to good West Australian merinos are making prices fully equal to last sales, and many instances can be given where the self-same-, clip has realised 4d to Id more. Wlieu gool combing wools are selling in the neighbourhood of 15d to lOd per lb. there can be nothing wrong with the market, and these nrices are forthcoming from homo iratfe -buyers. Whore we think American competition is being missed.the.most is in the good clean scon reds- that sold towards the dose of the second series at 2s -kl to 2s 6d. These vools tq-dav are selling around 2r 3d. and faulty.pices nnd bellies which can only bo used after carbonising are also slightly in favour of the buyer. Still all aro satisfied that prices are now back at practically the level of lost series, with .everything being absorbed quite as readily < Excellent figures have been" forthcoming for both Victorian and New South Wales merinos, and it shows to what a level fine wools have' gone, when West Australian grease is selling at lod to lojd per lb. CROSSBREDS MAKE NEW RECORDS. Th'e wools from the "mutton ghoep are making prices which almost stagger anyone with a knowledge of the wool trade. There has not yet been a series of auctions since the war broke out but what crossbreds have appreciated, but th 0 bulk of the wools to-day are realising Hd more- per lb than afc the close of last series. It is a fact that what could bo bought at lOd last July, is to-day easily making lCd to 16|d per lb. in fact Lincoln -wools are selling at 17d regularly, and this week Is 7d has been paid for.oO's fleece that will give a clean yield of no more than 70 per cent. This is a big clean yisld for wools of this quality, and certainly the.parcel was a very handsome one, but Is 6d is a daily quotation for wools of 48's to ,50'e quality, and even Is 7d has been paid for siiper crossbred, though the latter was really a "getting-in" lot. Still only very ordinary greasy crossbred wool to-day is procurable nt Is od, aiic if a man wants decent fleeces, he must be propared with a limit of Is o*d to Is 6d. These certainly, are record figures, and there 6eems to be no top to crossbred values. Where prices would go if these wools wero allowed to be shipped abroad is not easily imagined, and even -when the pace is solely made by Horn© trade.buyers, the reader can see what a red-hot market there is. New Zealand is certainly sending us some real first class clips, and they were never more appreciated than at the present time. Some of the finer crossbreds are a little tender in staple, but no ono to-day eeem« to pay the least regard to either condition or qua* i lity, and even pieces aro making lod. I Scoured crossbreds have been very [ sparsely represented this week, and are easily making th c extreme of last sales' values with often a good £d to Id more for shafty pieces and bellies. These are not being taken by topmakere. but by woollen manufacturers who have khaßi orders, for which purpose they do admirably. Sliped wools also have made new records, last Thursday the first season's pullg of the well-known Gear brand being catalogued. AH alike agreed that they never saw these wools in better condition, being very well got up indeed, more regular in quality than usual, and they made record prices. The halfbred laml>s realised 2e lid, first crossbred lambs 2 e Id; second crossbred lambs Is lid, and three-quarter bred lambs Is 9d. These are prices which are sufficient to stagger even the most optimistic, but when we come to the scoured crossbred, pelt at Is 7d, we find a value which is indeed marvellous. Then the ordinary crossbred pelt which was very -short and limey made Is sd. and even lamb pieces, which were fine and limey, had Is 6d bid -with as much readiness as if the wools had been 6dSuch prices clearly indicate an exceptionally strong market, and indeed they will take a good deal of beating. From now henceforth there should be a very good selection of New Zealand sliped lambs, all of which should be acceptable to kbaki manufacturers in particular. FRENCH TRADE DEVELOPING. A very satisfactory feature is the increased number of French buyers who are present in Goleman street. Ot course, one misses many familiar face* from Roubaix and Tourcoing, but other manufacturing centres are apparently awakening, and the most important French buyer eaid on Thursday that they found a great pressure for tops, Bradford alone being the centre to supply them with their needs, which unfortunately top-makers in Worstedopolis could not accomplish. No doubt the

standing combing machinery iv Roubaix is telling, its tale, not only in France, but also in other neutral countries, and all men are helpless to meet the increased demands of the outside world. Franco to-day i<, in a better mood for buying than since the outbreak of the war, and would be if only German soldiers could bo shifted out of Northern France. To hear of more French orders for military cloth bein? on the carpets, and also the Belgian War Office, is feeling in that direction. WOOL CONTRABAND. Since I last wrote, wool has been declared contraband, a move which has given general satisfaction. The view is favoured that this should facilitate shipment,, to the United States, seeing that America can no longer ship wool to Germany without English war vessels seizing the cargo and bringing the ship carrying the wool to an English port. What the Home trade fears the most is that Germany is receiving considerable supplies of South American crossbreds via Italy, for from October Ist, -when the current River Plate wool year begins, to February 18th, there wero exported from South America to Genoa 59,000 bales, compared with 6800 during the corresponding period of last year. If we convert this into Australian bales, it means, roughly, an import of.l"".OCO bales so far this season, against 14,400 for the corresponding period of last season*. BRADFORD MARKET. Not a great deal of change to be noted in connexion with the Bradford trade. The verdict of Uoleman street has been, awaited with considerable interest, and the announcement of easier

merino values surprised a good few , , \ The result is that the upward tendency • of fine top quotations has for the moment been arrested, but prices are no lower, and we do not think will be. The business offering in top s is co large : that top-makers cannot cope with the i trade, hence they are in no humour to ; accept less money, and they are to-day ; all wanting next Juno and later ', months for delivery. Crosebreds mov- i ing up so strongly has surprised every- ; one. the result being that top-makers to-day are wanting Jd to Id more than a week ago. They are just as indifferent sellero as if there had been no ad- W vanco. and they say candidly that they will make what they are asking, because all spinners alike urgently de- i mand delivery of tone. Prices are all | still advancing, and signs of any rolapso , I are entirely absent. I fl