AMERICA’S NEEDS KEEPING PRICE OF WOOL HIGH

Greymouth Evening Star, 3 August 1949, Page 5

AMERICA’S NEEDS KEEPING PRICE OF WOOL HIGH

NEW YORK. August I.—“A battle is developing between the. American consumer and the high price of wool,” said the Wall Street. Journal today. “Last week’s 19 per cent, price slashing by the American Woollen Company meant a first-round win for the consumer, but United States wool companies are facing factors beyond their control. “Australian wool, which is the price’s pace-settler, has fallen only 10 per cent, from the war-time peak. Two factors which are keeping the price high are: (1) The United States, which is second only to Britain as a wool user, is now using 50 pei’ cent, more wool than before the wgr; and (2) United States flocks have shrunk to the smallest size for a century. “Two-way Trend”

“This two-way trend in consumption and production has reached a point where 31b of every 51b of wool used in United States apparel must be imported, whereas before the. war only Tlb in every 51b used was imported. “Textile makers. describe, the causes of increased peace-time consumption of wool as ranging from woman’s new place in business to man’s new fancy for sports coats. “Business women, who now number 19,000,000, compared with 12,000,000 before the war, prefer suits to other dresses. ‘New look’ garments require, from 10 to 15 per cent, more wool than ‘old look’ garments. Production of men's sports coats is nearly five-fold that of the pre-war figure. “Domestic Production Skimpy

“Domestic wool production in 1949 will be only 272,000,0001 b, the skimpiest total for a quarter of a century, compared with 435,000,0001 b seven years ago. “Livestock men say that war-time and post-war full employment has made it extremely difficult for growers to hire at economical wages the men needed to tend the sheep, and many flocks have been sold to cash m on the high meat prices.” The newspaper said that 1,000,000,000 pounds of wool which had been in reserve at the,, end of the war had been used up, in spite of the big imports of recent years. “The American consumer cannot expect wool to become much cheaper soon, but synthetic fibres promise to lend him an increasingly strong hand in pulling down wool prices,” added the newspaper.