CHRISTCHURCH WOOL SALE

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28980, 22 August 1959, Page 14

CHRISTCHURCH WOOL SALE

Marked Improvement On Last August

Canterbury woolgrowers have reason to be well satisfied with the opening of the 1959-60 wool selling season in the province yesterday. All classes of wool sold at rates far above those of the corresponding sale last season. Fleece, which was in particularly strong demand, brought as much as lOd to Is per lb more than a year ago for crossbred wools and up to 6d per lb more for halfbred style wools.

Though not quite up to rates at Dunedin last week, all classes of crutchings sold at 8d to lOd per lb in advance of prices ruling in August last year.

For two catalogues of current season’s wool sold yesterday a preliminary estimate places the average price at 38d to 40d per lb. If this applies to all current wools sold at this sale it will represent a rise of more than 40 per cent, on the winter sale last season.

The New Zealand Wool Commission also had a very satisfactory day. At most sales last season thousands of bales were passed to its floor price bid. Yesterday it was offering stock wools held at Timaru, and for these there was a brisk demand at rates which, on particularly the medium and coarser fine wools, should give a useful return in excess of rates at which they were bought in. This should also be a matter for gratification to growers in that it places the commission in an even stronger position than hitherto to give support to the market in the future. Fleece Firm By comparison with the Dunedin sale last week, crossbred fleece was slightly dearer, with halfbred wools being fully firm. Crutchings were, however, slightly easier than in the south, with the finer types showing the most marked movement and the less attractive sorts in this category being hardest to sell. Quite a few passings of fine wool crutchings were made. Coarser crutchings met a better inquiry, but were still barely up to late rates. For good style well-got-up crutchings there was nevertheless a very sound sale. Both crossbred and halfbred fleece appeared to be about 2d per lb dearer than at the April Christchurch auction, when there was a dramatic rise in the market of up to lOd per lb. Yesterday a substantial weight of crossbred wool sold in the 48d to 54d range, with the highest price of the day at 57d. In August last year similar style crossbred fleece was quoted at 36d to 41d, and the highest price of that section of the sale was 47d. Sales at more than 50d were quite common yesterday. In the fire wool section Merino wool topped the market and the sale as a whole at 66jd. This wool was part of the Wool Commission’s stockpile, .and originally came from a South Canterbury high-country station. There was however, a relatively light weight of Merino in the sale, and for the average to good offerings values moved between about 48d and 54d. Last August Merino made only 51fd, and average to good style sold between 40d and 45cL At the closing sale of the last season Merino was still selling modestly at up to 54 J d. Halfbred wool predominated in the finer wools and a fair weight of these changed hands at from 48d to 54d, and on the appearance of prices these possibly made less gain on last August than other classes of wool. Half-bred wool sold up to 60 jd, compared with 56d a year ago, and Corriedale to 60d, compared with 54d-Cross-bred Crutchings Most of the cross-bred crutchings sold between 34d and 39d, a substantial improvement on the rates of a year ago, when much of the offering realised only 26d to 30d. The coarser crutchings sold to 48d yesterday, which was IOJd better than last August's best figure. Half-bred crutchings also improved to a similar extent, although meeting a somewhat irregular inquiry; A big proportion of these earned from 30d to 36d, whereas last year at the same sale they were making only 22d to 26d per lb. Yesterday, halfbred crutchings reached to 43jd, against 33}d a year ago, and Corriedales fetched to 42jd, compared with 31d. The offering of 24,537 bales included 9217 bales of current season’s wool offered by four Christchurch brokers and 8504 bales of current wool and 6816 bales of Wool Commission stock wool offered by Timaru brokers. Most of the stock wool was of fine qualities. When the first 20 lots came on the market in the early afternoon only three lots failed to exceed 50d, and a considerable proportion of the commission’s entry of straight fleece wools realised between 48d and 54d. Only 72 bales of stock wool failed to find a buyer and reverted to the commission. On the coarser qualities it is expected that the commission will make a useful gain, but on the finer types the margin over the buying-in price may be quite small. Stimulating Influence Practically no current wool was pas-ed to the commission’s bid. 1 in comparison with the thousands < of bales taken at the floor price | in the first three main sales last : season, but the commission. . nevertheless, still exerted a i stimulating influence on the < market in placing its bid where < commercial buyers made low j offers. There were several instances where the commission’s . intervention resulted in a re- ' sumption of bidding at a level a good 6d higher. j More than 3300 lots were catalogued for sale yesterday and ' buyers cut their lunch adjourn ment to half an hour to enable ! the big quantity of wool to be handled. Nevertheless, the sale took nearly 12 hours’ actual selling time. The entry for the two-day sale Includes a record quantity of cur- 1 rent season’s wool. More early- ; shorn fleece is to hand than ever before. This has opened up very , well, and is described as being : of good colour and fair length, •nd except from the worstaffected drought areas is little lighter than usual. I

-I The crutchings are well up to .(standard and. in the opinion of . I some brokers, are above usual I standards. r Entries for the Christchurch I section of the sale are drawn , from Mid-Canterbury, Banks 1 Peninsula, North Canterbury, and i the West Coast. I Best Prices f Station lines of South CanterI bury Merino fleece, offered by the ■ Wool Commission, topped the t sale. Four bales realised 66Jd, i four made 59jd, five made 57d, , and 14 made 56id. Three bales > of binned wool, offered by the National Mortgage and Agency Company, Ltd., Timaru, brought 57Jd. i Halfbred fleece sales were i headed by C. G. Davison (AshI burton) with one lot of four bales at 60jd and another four bales at 60d. L. J. Ramsay (Waimate) i sold three bales at 59d, four at ; 57|d, fourats6jd, and four at 55Jd. ; For a binned lot of 13 bales, the National Mortgage and Agency Company, Ltd., and H. Matson and Company received Another lot of 13 bales, sold by J. B. Douglas Clifford (Stonyhurst) brought 58d, and 17 bales from the same vendor made 56Jd. The commission sold four bales at 58Jd. Three bales of binned wool, offered by the Canterbury Farmers’ Co-operative Association, Ltd., Timaru, made 58d, The best price for Corriedale flece went to C. G. Robinson (Te Pirita), with 17 bales at 60d. J. W. T. Banks (Cheviot) received 58d for eight bales, 56J for nine, and 56d for four. Mrs K. M. Popplewell (Waiau) gained 57d for four bales and 56Jd for four. The three-quarterbred section was headed by J. H. Harris (Rakahuri), with 10 bales at 58d. and W. J. Cox (Maungati), with three bales at 57Jd. Crossbred prices ranged up to 57d, paid for four bales from C. Davis (Hororata), and for one bale of binned wool Pyne, Gould, Guinness Ltd., Timaru, received the same price. Sales at 56d were made by N. Bee (Oamaru), with six bales, W. Hawke (Waimate) with five bales, and Wright, Stephenson and Company, .Ltd., Timaqi, with one bale of burned wool. Crutchings Sales The top price for Merino crutchings was 34Jd, which was paid for eight bales from A. D. Dick (Lilybank Station, Lake Tekapo). For four bales S. Richmond (Seddon) received 34Ad, and the estate J. Stevenson (Flaxton) sold two bales at 34d. Halfbred crutchings made to 43 jd for eight bales of binned wool offered by the New Zealand Farmers’ Co-operative Association, Ltd, Christchurch, and the same firm sold another eight bales at 43Jd. The best price for Corriedale crutchings was 42Jd for four bales from D W. Ensor (Lammermoor. Cheviot). In the crossbred section the Canterbury Farmers’ Co-opera-tive Association, Ltd, Timaru, sold three bales of binned wool at 48d, and the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Ltd, Timaru, received 47d for six bales of binned wool. T. L Dale (Maungati) sold twq bales at 46|d. Details of catalogues sold yesterday were: Christchurch Brokers Bales New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Ltd. .. 856 1 »algety -and Company Ltd. 3351 National Mortgage and Agency Company .. 2794 New Zealand Farmers’ Co-op. Association .. 2216 9217 Timaru Brokers Bales Canterbury Farmers’ Co-op. Association Ltd. 1765 National Mortgage and Agency, .. .. 1481 New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency . 1015 Dalgety and Company ./1160 Pyne, Gould, Guinness, Ltd 1660 Wright. Stephenson and Company .. .. 1423 8504 Wool Commission wool: Canterbury Farmers’ Co-operative Association, 622 bales; National Mortgage and Agency. 2203 bales; New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency, 233 bales; Dalgety and Company, 1548 bales: Pyne. Gould, Guinness, Ltd, 1709 bales; Wright, Stephenson and Company. 501 bales; total. 6816 bales. The sale will be resumed at 8 a.m. today, when the temaining Christchurch broker will sell current season’s wool and all local ! brokers will take part in the sale 1 of a further 7438 bales of stock 1 wools. The total entry for the 1 sale as a whole is 35.526 bales. -

Crossword Solution

Following ts the solution to the crossword puzzle printed on another page:—Across: 1. Drab; 3, Agitated; 9, Soprano; 10. Arrow; 11, Long division; 13, Coping; 15. Settle; 17, Demonstrated; 20, Tiara: 21, Bandage; 22. Precedes; 23, Star. Down: 1. Displace: 2, Aspen; 4, Groove; 5, Transferring; 6. Turn-out; 7, Down; 8. Maiden voyage; 12, Headgear; 14. Preoare; 16, Usable; 18, Tract; 19, Step.