Slump In Wool Values

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32233, 27 February 1970, Page 7

Slump In Wool Values

Some producers of crossbred wool may have received less for their product this month than they did in February, 1968, during the recession in wool values in 1966-67 and 1967-68. This is caused by a combination of wool prices having fallen to extremely low levels again and the floor price for wool, up to which growers returns are, if necessary, supplemented, being lower than was the case two years ago. In February two years ago the average level of the floor price was 25c, but today it is only 22 i c. The manager of the Wool Commission, Mr H. L. M. Peirse, confirmed last week that it was possible growers’ net returns were less, after crossbred wools at Timaru had been much in line with values ruling two years ago. The following table sh< Canterbury in February of being for the Timaru sale) Fine halfbred .. 4 Medium halfbred .. ‘ Strong halfbred .. < Fine crossbred .. : Medium crossbred . . < Coarse crossbred .. I

t There was, however, a slight B recovery in values for these wools at this week’s Christ- " church sale. 1 But taking into account, , rising costs and the effects of devaluation in 1967, farmers returns are now at ex1 tremely low levels. A comparison of values ruling for halfbred and Corriedale wools in February of r each year since 1966 shows r that these are now lower 3 than, in any of these other seasons, when fine wools held L up comparatively well and e did not suffer the collapse of the coarser wools. These j wools sagged again this e week on weak Timaru rates. Mr Peirse strongly rejected any suggestion that the 1 commission should have supplemented more wool than j about 5 per cent of lots at / the Timaru sale, r He had been asked about i this in the light of a lot i of coarser wools at Timaru s bringing only about 21c to 23c a lb, when the commissows approximate values of avi rf each of the years designated l

sion had given a floor of 25c for B grade coarse cross-! bred fleece of 465/48s and 46s counts when it announced floor price arrangements for the current season in September. Mr Peirse drew attention to the yield and style of drought-affected wools in the Timaru offering and said that the commission’s floor prices were based on standards yields and had to be adjusted to the yields and styles of particular wools. Unhappily, he said, there would be precious little B grade wool coming up at some auctions in the near future. The commission. he added, would not offer any stock wools at this stage, and this included the next Timaru sale. It is the policy of the com-. mission to cause the mini-' mum disturbance of the dis-i posal of current season’s! growers’ wool in its selling: operations. /erage to good wools in (the figures for this year

): ■ 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 ctoc ctbc ctoc c to c c to c 42 47 39 44 45 51 40 46 34 41 41 45 37 42 40 47 39 42 31 36 39 44 35 40 30 38 35 41 28 34 38 42 32 38 26 30 29 36 26 34 36* 39 30 33 22 25 27 31 23 26 34 37 30 33 20 23 24 27 21 23