Caution On Aust. Wool Selling

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30531, 28 August 1964, Page 11

Caution On Aust. Wool Selling

(Special Correspondent N Z.P.A.) LONDON, August 27. Outward optimism at the reopening of the Australian wool auctions at prices roughly 2i per cent above July levels is tempered with caution. Wool traders are unwilling to commit themselves on prospects for the year, says the “Financial Times.”

There is plenty of wool available, it continues. Not only does Australia expect another record clip, currently forecast at 1.7 per cent above the 1751 m lb of 1963-64, but there are substantial carryovers in Uruguay and the Argentine. Consumption of wool in topmaking in Bradford is not encouraging. In the first half of 1964 there was a swing of 39.2 per cent towards synthetic usage in tops, underlining tne detrimental effect the recent high raw wool prices can have on demand. In the background are fears of deflationary measures bv the British Government to bolster the economy, even if these are delayed until after the General Election. Other leading wool consumers are also far from confident at the moment in Japan, yarn and cloth supplies are a little above normal, and in France and Germany top stocks are considerably higher. These factors in themselves suggest a return to the bearish mood which affected the wool markets in the late spring, the “Financial Times” continues. Japan is placed with limited

supplies of wool, and plans are believed to be. in hand to expand yarn output after October 1 if necessary. However, they are not being reflected in prices at the sales.

Japan, in particular, as well as the Continent, has been buying heavily, while Bradford and Eastern Europe stand on the sidelines.