IN FINE WOOL AREA

Evening Star, Issue 21286, 15 December 1932, Page 8

IN FINE WOOL AREA

FIRST SOUTH ISLAND SALE FREE BIDDING OF LOCAL MILLS CREATES GOOD TONE ANTICIPATED LEVELS REACHED [Spjciai. to th* ‘ Stas.’] CHRISTCHURCH, December 15. Although the wool salo yesterday opened disappointingly, its course from a fairly early point was more encourag- , ing. The improvement began when the 1 finer wools attracted the free bidding of the local mills, which influenced the tone of competition for all good classes in the catalogue. Except at the beginning of the sale, prices, therefore, generally reached anticipated levels, at which vendors freely met the market. The passings were only .about 10 per cent., and though such a clearance is far from indicating that profitable prices were realised, it indicates, at least,: that they were preferred to . the risks of tying up business and waiting for a rise. It is encouraging also to find that all the chief buying centres—Bradford, Trance, and Germany—were active, and active in particular among fine wools. The breadth and steadiness of the demand here gives growers in Canterbury, and oa the East Coast of the South Island generally, reasons for confidence, or at least hope, which cannot be felt in districts which produce the poorer and coarser wools. For them the future holds very little promise, but the fine wool areas will be the last to suffer any further break in prices, and the first to benefit from any rise. That this is sorely, needed is shown as plainly by the top prices of the sale, as by the average and lower prices.