Wool prices unchanged

Press, 14 October 1989, Page 16

Wool prices unchanged

Wool prices remained generally unchanged at the Timaru and Invercargill sale at Christchurch yesterday. The market indicator remained at 625 c clean per kilogram after falling 4c at Thursday’s Napier and Christchurch sales.

Support from the Wool Board was a little less than recent sales buying 23 per cent, or 331 clean tonnes in 2808 bales. The Timaru sale was the first main sale for the season of Merino wool from South Canterbury and North Otago. Most of the wool was drawn from Wanaka, Tarras, Omarama, North Otago, the Mackenzie Country, Mid-Canterbury and South Canterbury. , The Merino wool offered for sale was of good quality and style. Length and colour were similar to last season. The microns in some clips were finer, reflecting the feed shortage during the growing season. The preparation on these clips was of a high standard with classers showing more care in removing

shorter wool this year. Brokers experienced problems with the preparation of some downland Merino clips being mixed in micron and length. Some farmers had also sent in Merino necks and pieces together, incurring extra sorting charges.

Halfbred and Corriedale wool was of good style and colour, but carried more vegetable matter than last year. Some lots carried slightly more dust than usual. These clips were also a little finer than last year. Crossbred fleece, early shear and second shear wool, was again of good colour, length and style. Some lots of second shear were a little shorter. Pen stain was a fault which showed in crossbred shorn hoggets, resulting from the flush of soft feed and farmers unable to empty sheep out before shearing. Prices compared with the Napier and Christchurch sales on Thursday were: Merino fleece 19 micron, 4 per cent cheaper, 20 to 24 micron,

unchanged; bulky skirtings, nominally unchanged; Halfbred fleece 25 to 31 microns, unchanged; bulky skirting, nominally unchanged; Crossbred fleece 35 micron and finer, unchanged, 37 micron, one per cent dearer, bulky skirtings, one per cent cheaper; second shear, one per cent cheaper; clothing oddments 2.5 per cent cheaper; crutchings, 1.5 per cent cheaper; second pieces and lox, unchanged. The combined offering of 1432 clean tonnes, in 12,136 bales, for the sales comprised 24 per cent Merino fleece, 12 per cent Halfbred fleece, 22 per cent Crossbred fleece, 16 per cent second shear, 5 per cent crutchings, 7 per cent bulky skirtings, and 5 per cent clothing oddments, with the balance made up of second pieces, lox, and miscellaneous. The order of the Timaru sale was Pyne Gould Guiness, 1862 bales in 231 lots; Wrightson Wool, 5121 bales in 610 lots, giving a total of 6983 bales in 841 lots.