Leather sales high

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34045, 8 January 1976, Page 8

Leather sales high

(/•rfGH Our Oun Reporter) TIMARU. Jan. 7. ' New Zealand Light Leathers, Ltd, of Timaru, expected to sell! about 100.000 dozen crust lamb pelts (a finished product) for export in the year ending, in September, the com-; pany secretary (Mr N. A. Curry) said today. Mr Curry said that higher raw pelt prices had made it more attractive for overseas tanners to buy crust pelts. This had been shown by more orders recently from Italy. America. France, and the United Kingdom. The prices the company naid for pelts had been affected bv the slow start toj • the season. •

Lambs had not come forward as quickly as it would

have liked. The slow start to the killing season, with holdups in the works, had meant a scarcity of lambs, which had tended to increase the price of pelts. j Mr Curry said he was exjamining the situation in the ’ light of the latest pelt prices. Devaluation had had some ! effect, but whether the higher pelt prices would apply right through the season was anybody’s guess, said Mr Curry. His personal opinion was ;that when lamb killing in- • creased there might be some leasing in price. The higher prices had made it easier for the company to make overseas sales of its substantial stocks. However, the firm had to make every effort to increase the overiseas prices for its finished products because it would , need to buy more pelts to • keep production up.