EXPORT PRICES FOR LAMB

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27500, 6 November 1954, Page 6

EXPORT PRICES FOR LAMB

Schedule Opens (At

30d Per Lb HEAVIER WEIGHTS SCALED DOWN

(By Out Commercial The eagerly-awaited opening export -fat lamb schedule for Canterbury has now been made available and it embodies several interesting departures from the schedule associated with the -bulk purchase regime. , In addition, without taking any premium payments. into account, the basic price has been advanced by 7|d per lb. Next Monday all North Canterbury works will be geared in part to the handling of fat lambs offering for the . export trade. An export schedule has been issued and by “gentlemen s agreement” the prices embodied will be adhered to by all works in the opening stages of the season at least. In terms of this schedule 2s 6d per lb" will be paid for lambs under 361 b. This price embodies a temporary premium of 3d per lb applicable to all -weights. ■ . Thus, the opening price for prime lambs of 361 b will be £4 10s a head; but this buoyant price will not be long maintained and by Monday week the works in North Canterbury will in all probability be operating on straight-out schedule prices which today are from 27d per lb downwards. The schedule is as follows, with the prices of last season:—

A premium of 3d per lb will be added to the above prices on all lambs killed for the first shipments on killings to November 13. A material point of interest about the new schedule is the sharp drop in price for the heavier lambs which is far more pronounced than has been the case in recent years. Last year the drop from the opening group to the 371 b to 421 b class was only 3-8 d per lb, whereas, this year it is 25-8 d per lb, and by the time the heaviest weights scheduled are reached it is 9|d per lb.

Prices for Seconds Another radical departure from the schedule which ruled during the last -two seasons is the differentiation in prices for seconds. Last season the price for seconds, irrespective of weight, was 18 5-8 d per lb, whereas this season it ranges down from 26Jd to 18id. It is expected that the premium of 3d per lb will be paid for ‘only those lambs accepted for export on the first ships to carry shipments from the South Island. These ships, both of which will sail from Lyttelton, are the Devon and the Waitangi. The Devon is listed to leave port about November 13 and is due to arrive at London about December 30, and the Waitangi will leave between November 15 and 18 so as to arrive in London about December 26.

Most works have been operating sparingly during the last week or so find they report a common experience of encountering a much larger proportion of lighter-weight lambs than usual. At Islington, for instance, the average weight this week was only 30 to 311 b, and at Belfast the percentage of primes under 361 b was 72 against only 51 per cent, in the opening week of last season. The lowestweight prime lambs acceptable remains at 201 b.

Because of the expected' ultimate effect of the shipping problem created by the dock strike in England and the consequences of the possibility of a prolongation of the drought in Canterbury, it is not expected that the 1954-55 export season for fat lambs will be without its vicissitudes. Some sharp fluctuations in schedule rates may occur during the coming months. A factor which is militating against an early resumption of slaughtering operations on a full scale is that many freezing works hands are still engaged upon shearing and other seasonal work from which normally’ they are not released until late In November or early in December. Meanwhile, all North Canterbury works will be operating at increased tempo, but not full capacity, as from Monday. The Fairfield works are to ooen on Monday week, November 15, and other works situated further south on dates yet to be fixed.

Lambs 1954 1953 Weight d. per lb d. per lb PrimeUnder 36 27 19| 37/42 . 248 19g , 43/50 . .. 22J 19 51/56 . .. 175 178 • Seconds— .. 261 All weights Under 36 37/42 .. . 22 J 18| Over 42 .. 181 —