Ewe Fair Round Over Again

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31322, 18 March 1967, Page 9

Ewe Fair Round Over Again

The ewe fair season has come to an end again. Often in the past few years it has seemed that the weather has been the main factor influencing prices. If the season was dry and the feed outlook for the winter not very bright prices were lower; if it was a wet season with bountiful feed supplies prices were higher. This time it seems that economic factors have played a bigger part. Wool, especially coarser wool, is in the doldrums, and lamb prices have been at modest levels and the fairs have been held to a background of more economic stringency. Climatic factors have generally been favourable for the fairs. For almost two years now the rainfall over most of the province has been well spread and adequate and feed reserves should be adequate at this stage, although during most of the fair season itself it has probably been dry enough. Under these circumstances the levels of values at fairs in North Canterbury have not been too bad and probably better than expected. But here of course the blow has been lessened because the sheep are mainly fine wools and at this time this is the favoured wool which is still selling pretty well. Yet it is fair to recall that when prices for wool declined in the late 1950 s it was the finer wools that the Wool Commission had to support The talk then yas that the finer wools had priced themselves out of the market and now with modern machinery the coaser wools were being used for many of the purposes that the finer wools had been used for, and so the margin between the two narrowed and almost disappeared. This just serves to show how fortunes fluctuate and how trends in primary produce markets are constantly changing. But this has been the year of the fine wools at the North Canterbury fairs. Where in the past values for these sheep have been trailing prices paid at the coaser wool centres in Mid-Canterbury and Little River, this year the tables have been reversed and the finer wools have been that 5s to 15s or so dearer than the Romneys of comparable age. Compared with last year the finer wool two-tooths have been somewhere about 20s a head cheaper this season, and if one accepts the idea that last year prices were unduly high then at the recent levels prices have not been too bad. Of course it is a different story when it comes to the Romneys and at Little River and Methven this year the decline was more like 40s. The comment has frequently been made in recent years that two-tooth ewes look cheap compared with the older ewes. If anything, this position has become even more marked this year and may be the tighter conditions with people being prepared to go to a certain price and the older ewes thus coming more frequently within their

range has had something to do with this. The position has arisen that at some of the northern fairs where the better old ewes have been about as dear as good twotooths. It is a trend that is not exactly easy to follow.

For fine wool four and five-year-old ewes prices have probably been back about 10s to 15s or 16s on last year and there have still been many good sales made. The coarser wool ewes have, of course, slumped badly and here, again, the margin has been more like 30s to 40s.

There have been people round the fairs this year saying that if one assumes that the pound today is worth only a third of what it was, say in 1939, then values at the fairs today and for a prime lamb are indeed back to depression levels —say the equivalent of 25s for a good-two-tooth and 17s or 18s for a serviceable old ewe.

Tighter credit conditions this year have not prevented good clearances being made at most of the fairs in North and Mid-Canterbury. One or two of the Mid-Canterbury sales have, however, showed some weakness in this respect. Actually quite a few more sheep have had to be handled this season. Not counting the Ashburton or Methven ewe lamb sales and yesterday’s fine wool fair at Tinwald, the entries' for Mid and North Canterbury fairs this season has been up by 27,683 head or by 13 per cent on last year’s tally to 237,913 (210,230 for comparable sales On the whole, during the course of the fair season values have remained pretty stable and for fine wools there has perhaps been a gradual firming in values. It has been noticeable this year that the sheep have seldom come forward looking in better condition and of course the prolific season for growth has been a major factor in this.

There have been some high prices paid this year. For two-tooths top honour, it seems, must go to former New Zealand ploughing champion and Wakanui farmer R. M. (Bob) Kingsbury with 116 Corriedales selling for £5 4s. At the same fair—the Ashburton fine wool two-tooth sale—another pen from D. G. Chisnail, of Eskdale, Hinds, made £5. For a big line of two-tooths the 660 Corriedales from C. G. Gardner, of Emu Plains,

Waiau, which made 97 s a head, would take a bit of beating. In the coarser wool bracket some of the highest prices were paid at Ashburton when E. G. Wainscott, of Mitcham, realised 95s for 81 Romneys and Fechney Brothers of Westerfield, 95s for 82 Border Leicester Romney cross. In the older ewe department the top honours this year are very much with the fine wool men. R. C. Overton, of Raumati, once again features strongly with 251 four-year-old Corriedales sell-

ing at the first Amberley sale for 85s, and he incidentally had 225 five-year ewes at 68s at the same sale. His latter price was, of course, bettered later and the top honour here must go to Timpendean Farm, Ltd., of Waikari, with 299 Corriedales selling for 74s at Hawarden. For older Romney ewes one of the best prices of the series was actually paid at Kaikoura where C. A. McGregor, of Greenhills, sold four-year-olds for 735. Here is an approximate range of values for the fairs: Two-tooth ewes: Best fine

wools 85s to 955, good 72s to 82s, average 60s to 695, and others down to 50s. Best Romney 80s to 88s, good 70s to 78s, average 58s to 68s, others down to 455.

Four-year-old ewes: Best fine wools 65s to 745, good 58s to 645, average 48s to 58s, others down to 40s. Best Romneys, 50s to 60s, average to good 40s to 48s. Five - year - old ewes: Best fine wools 58s to 675, good 50s to 58s, average 42s to 48s and others down to 30s. Average to good Romneys 40s to 48s, and others down to 30s.