AUSTRALASIAN WOOL MARKETS.

Evening Star, Volume 12869, Issue 12869, 19 July 1906, Page 7

AUSTRALASIAN WOOL MARKETS.

The following summary of annual staistics for tho season from Ist, July, 1905. to 30th June, 1906, arc from Dalgety and Co.'s journal : The sales of wool in the Australasian markets for the oast twelve months total 1,354,865 bales, which realised £18,304.012, as compared with 1.092,651 bales, which grossed £13,825,269, in the previous season, so that the increase for Australasia from local sales of wool has amounted to £4,478,473. The- total exportable production from Australia and New Zealand lias amounted to 1,869,455 bales, which, if taken at £l3 10s 3d per bale, ijives a value of £25,261,011. This is exclusive of 30.000 bales manufactured into cloth, etc.-, in the colonies worth, say, £405.375. Thus the total production is estimated to have yielded upwards of twenty-five millions sterling. The previous year's output of 1,595,734 bales was valued at twenty millions sterling, so that there has been an increase in revenue of five millions sterling. As is well known, considerable quantities of wool grown in one State are sold in another, so that the net production figures for the States separately differ from those of the oversea exports. As closelv as the figures can be obtained from the Customs returns, the net production of each State has been as under : New Soath WaJes ... 816.000 bales Victoria „ _ 267.500 ~ Queensland «.. „. ._ 176.000 '., South Australia „. ... 119.000 West Australia ... ._ 42.500 T Tasmania ... _. „ 33.500 " New Zealand „. _. Total ... ... „. 1.869,500 „ Sheep numbers made uo from figures taken from tho most recent returns are as follow : New South Wales ... 39 494 207 Victoria - - 11,455115 Queensland 12,535,231 South Australia 6.524,300 West Australia ... „. ... 3,140^360 Tasmania ... „ 1.556^460 Australian States 74,705,673 New Zealand ._ 19,130,875 Australasia 93,836,543 A fo-rge increase in the flocks is expected to take place during tho present year. Throughout tho past twelve months prices have been on tlie average about 10 per cent, higher, the best sales having been made of fine cross-brede and come? backs, which suited the altered American requirements. Other descriptions benefited from a strong Continental demand, and all sorts materially improved their position, with the exception, perhans, of inferior merinoes. From the beginning to the end of the sales an excellent demand prevailed. As regards the future, tho view is taken that while the production during the ensuing season will not result in any plethora of stocks, the use of substitutes and firmness of money are likely to act as barriers to any increase in Values, and may, in fact, cause a moderate lowering of the present level. A ready deihand is pected to welcome the coming clio. and it is considered thmfc the oorrat should be cleared at comparatively hieh prices owing to the excellent trade conditions prevailing at the present time.