LONDON WOOL SALES.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1021, 10 January 1911, Page 2

LONDON WOOL SALES.

A LITTLE WEAKNESS IX MERINOS. (From Our Spccial Correspondent.) London, December 2. 1310. C'olemnn Street is pursuing the even tenor of its course,' and nothing, really startling can bo chronicled in connection with the current series, but nil the feath'res'whlcß'iriaEc'Tor a'fairly"souffirsitu- ' iition arc still in evidence. There continues to be a large attendance of. buyers, and with the exception of America great " activity characterises each day's sittings. When all" is said ami done, the buying resources of the trade arc certainly great, i'pr to keep going ttree or four more irn- i portant selling centres in addition to Colemau Street, is -no light task. Big weights of.wool are being, otfered at one centre or another almost every day of the week, and it is not too much to say. that all' combined something like • one million bales, have had to be lifted ana paid for sincc the commencement of the current season. This means that the" money in circulation tots up to a fairly decent sum, and yet users do not seem choked. Good competition continues to characterise the auctions . in Coleman Street, and prices oh the \vhole are fairly firm atid steady." Things are not what call be called "red hot," but there is ■ abroad a spirit of buying, and the catalogues arc being daily cleared. The Home and Continental trades are the principal operators, America being even worse re-■ presented than was the case Inst. series, and very little buying' indeed is being done for that quarter/ • The catalogues submitted contain an ex-:' cellent assortment of wools, merinos occupying the leading position. Theso seem to "be still in- favour with all sections, and ' both the Home, Fjench, and. Ger- • man trades are buying liberally, "while Russia is also procuring some fair weights of scoureds. We are often surprised that greasy combing wools' are. not secured' for that market,. but seemingly scoureds are what they Tcquire. If America was only in th<\market for merinos it would certainly just give that finishing touch, to the sales and make everything very firm indeed. However, not" the best of iiews continues to arrive.from across the' Atlantic, and with . still considerable' weights of raw material in bond, it looks as if some months will yet have to. elapse before United States importers are' ready for buying any weights.. Thero continues a steady demand for the raw material.- The selection is such that it cannot be ignored by any section of the' trade, and although prices aro ho firmer than at the opening, still, "the pace is good, and values are. being paid which cannot but satisfy the owners. The call remains unabated for the test wools, and here full opening. rates are- being paid. When we comeio medium descriptions, heavy, shabby, faulty wools of a carbonising character have lost ground by. ill. to Id. per lb. .Like many more, we thought the opening- was just a shade too keen to last,'for prices were sensibly above those current jn. Bradford, or even Australia. No doubt at the opening'some very urgent requirements had to be filled, this accounting to some extent for the high prices which were paid. a. more rational buying spirit prevails.-' Users aro . ready for operating, but at' what they consider to be -a price more'' in harmony with what are ruling to-day in consuming centres. It must now be borne in mind : that every week is going' to sea-landed in. all European manufacturing areas increasing quantities of raw material from the sources of supply, con-,; sequently buyers are not going to paymore when they believe that prices cannot possibly further increase. In fact, there still obtains an opinion in many quarters that we shall yet see. a. trifle cheaper raw material, although no party seems prepared for', a (.serious setback in prices. The ■way the raw material has so' far moved out of hand is a clear proof of the splendid, trade that .is passing, in all i.cons.uming .centres,-aiid mills must be, very busy, otherwise wool would not be picked up in such a. free way. This '.series is chiefly characterised' by the offerings of. new clip wools from the Commonwealth, and we are able to see how values compare with tho same date a year ago. The ,clip as a rule is fairly well" gfowiiVi .although' a large'proportion is '-somewhat short-ia staple,'-and is'veryseedy and biirry. The. best prices are naturally forthcoming" for . the cleanesjt, descriptions, par'-, ticularly-keen to procure good fine spin-' ning wools, and anything showing real' good quality is not a particle cheaner than last, Series. Below we shW .what well-known' clips have realised' compared with the corresponding'scries a yeir ago': ."WONNAMINTA (N.S.W. Wool).' ' Nor; Nov. .. . series, series,"' ' 'l'W.9. 1910.

Crossbred values are very steady, full opening rates' being still "oaid. '."Prices here are equal to last series;' and on the whole everything of a crossbred quality is moving, freely. The Home trade, is giving the'"most support, and, all things considered, the situation-is very sound. • A STEADY MARKET. There is nothing very new to chronicle at the Bradford end-, of the trade, the situation being largely dominated by Coleman Street, 'l'ne news that merinoa are not so firm' as at the opening has naturally done this market no good k but values are now moving in sympathy with what has been the order of tlie day at this end during the past six weeks. It is generally recognised that Coleman Street on the opening night went a fuil penny above this market; in fact, prices are still on' a higher level than can be mads here to-day. In regard to merinos, spot business is very slow, and users are buying no more than circumstances compel them to. It cannot be said that prices are sagging, but there is no doubt they nr?. not so liriii' as they have been, and we think slight concessions can be obtained in merinos. . More thaii one of our largest importers are prepared to sell. forward for January delivery at 2s. 3d., and a shadev less would be taken if a firm "offer wiiS made.'-'' The fact is importers aro prepared to sell all they can, for the impassion is still in evidence that Wool can be picked up in Australia at less than ,in Coleman Street. Upon that point there can,, be no two opinions, . for it is recognised that all through the season wool has bten'a trifle cheaper "a Australia than cabled information reports. There' has-been all along a very sober policy pursued, and nobody has attempted in the least to rush the situa- . tion. The best asset of all continues to a very large and satisfactory consumption. -Mills everywhere are well run, although' in the Huildersfield district complaints are more numerous as to the inability-of manufacturers to obtain orders as they have bsen accustomed to. Wo aro strongly inclined to think, that all --alike are more disposed at present to adopt a somewhat conservative attitude, and go from hand to mouth. C-ressbreds arc very linn, and here the ell-tot of London is more pronounced than ' in merinos. At the same time a good 40's prepared top can still be bought at Hid- A little more has lately been doing in carded descriptions,, and,, also Tine tops. Spinners seem well supplied with particulars, and.thtre.is no dack of consumption. It' is this faot which is . stimulating, but there does not seem at ' present uiuch likelincss of any highes , prices for the raw material. \

Description. d. d. Greasy, super.combing EH...-. IP 10 ■ Greasy super combing.W .' 10' ' HH Greasy .first combine H- 9 . 8J. Greasy 'first' necks, -H;.10j 1 : 11' Greasy first necks AV 1IH 10J' Greasy broken fleeeo........... D - 9 GOOLGUMBLA (Victoria Wools).' Greasy first combine E,'; 13V 13 Greasy A combing. E 10-i . 10*" Greasy first fleece 10 10J\ . Greasy broken H 10 .91. Greasy pieces H 81 8 ' Greasy bellies 8V TJ . Greasy second lambs..." 1 7J-. MALVERN HILLS (Queensland Wool). Greasy AA combing EH 13$ 1.3J Greasy AA combing E 11 13 .; Greasy A combing EH 1D\ "-..23 Greasy A- combing E . 12" 14 Greasy necks EE .... .12-. 12 . Greasy necks E 1H : 12 ■ Greasy first pieces EH— 1U-' H ■ Greasy bellies ;E 9V . 9 '. YARIiABEE (Victoria Wool).' Greasy first combing W 11 10J* Greasy necks ..' ; 9£ 81*. Greasy broken W 9 : 7J« Greasy bellies' GJ ' 61 'Bid. ■