WOOL REMAINS FIRM.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 101, 29 March 1939, Page 4

WOOL REMAINS FIRM.

BIDDING AT AUCKLAND. SECOND DAY’S REALISATIONS. Per Prees Association. AUCKLAND, March 28. The final Auckland wool sale of the present scries was concluded to-day, when prices paid were firm on those ruling at the opening of the sale on Monday. The remaining two catalogues, comprising 11,386 bales, attracted keen bidding from representatives of Bradford and Continental firnics, and were disposed of in loss than two hours. . . Because of the similarity of. conditions to-day to those experienced at tho opening of the sale, no official report and range of prices covering the second day’s activities has been issued by the Auckland Woolbrokers’ Association. Tho range of prices issued on Monday also applies to values received to-day. Since there was a smaller proportion of lambs’ wool in ono i of the two catalogues to-day, it. is possible that the average price paid will bh slightly ip excess of ihc figure of about 89 a lb estimated as the average for Monday's section of the sale. A prico slightly in excess of £l2 a bale is considered likely to be the average for to-day's selling and. on this basis, with a clearance of at least 95 per cent., the return to growers would ho about £130,000. Growers aro estimated to havo reccued something like £280,000 from the opening dav of the sale, and thoir proceeds from the two days’ soiling aro therefore expected to approach £410,000, against £432,521 from the final salo last year. A sum of £633,569 lias already been received from the first two Auckland sales this season, and tho return for the three sales is thus thought likely to exceed tho £1.000,000 mark by a fair margin and to equal the 1937-38 realisation of £1.031.483. As was the case on Monday, tho most prominent buyers today were representatives of Bradford, France and Germany. There was some uncertainty as to whether Japan was in the market, though it was believed that a small proportion of the offering was bought, on behalf of Japanese. p EFrNITE LIMITS. Bidding was again brisk, but restricted by definite limits. In isolated instances lot? of wool that were not in demand did not fetch a single bid. On one or two occasions halfpenny advances were offered by buyers anxious to secure a certain attractive lot, but for the most part rises were made in farthings, and when two or three buyers called tho same figure simultaneously none appeared willing to offer another farthing to clinch tho deal. Once again bidding, though active for the duration of ihc sale, was confined to comparatively few of the buyers present The top price to-day was lid a lb which was accepted for two offerings. The highest price offered was 133 d for 11 bales of scoured fine crossbred. The wool was parsed at this price. Though one or two of the highest, bids of the day failed to reach growers’ reserves, passings were infrequent It was estimated that less than five per cent, of the wool offered remained unsold at the end of the auction, and of that a proportion is likely to be disposed of by private treaty.