WOOL PRICES ADVANCED.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18566, 26 November 1923, Page 10

WOOL PRICES ADVANCED.

FIRST SALE IN AUCKLAND.

CROSSBRED IN KEEN DEMAND.

OVERSEAS BUYERS ACTIVE.

A PRACTICAL CLEARANCE.

The first wool sale of the season in Auckland was held in the Town Hall concert chamber on Saturday, when a catalogue of 11,939 bales was offered, compared with 11.516 bales at the opening sale of last season. It is worthy of note that, last season's catalogues inc uued a much larger percentage of old wool, which had been held by farmers in anticipation of a rise in the market. There was on Saturday the largest bench of buyers that ever attended tho local sates, representing all sections o the trade from all consuming centres m eluding British, French, Belgian, Amen can, Japanese, German. Australian, and New Zealand mills. A feature of the sale was the large attendance of the public that hrorSd the gallery of the concert chamber It was evident that many of the woolgrowers had come to the city to witness the sale, and the keenest interest was manifested in the proceedings throughout Bidding was spirited from the onuuag of the sale, and prices [or all wools showed a substantial advance on those realised last season. This, was forecasted in the reports from Chnstchurch and \J elhngton. where the two first sales of the New Zealand f«rie* have been hela. The improvement applied especially to crossbred wools, of which practically the whole of the Auckland clip consists. The prices for some classes of wool exceeded anticipations, resulting in an almost complete clearance. 98 per cent, being sold unde. the hammer at prices in advance of those recorded at the Southern sales. A feature of the bidding was that for some lines, principally 'unshorn hoggets first pieces and lamb's, after the room had apparently finished bidding, two or three buyers would run the prices up another od to 4d per lb. Continental buyers were chietly responsible for these increases.

Improvement in Quality. The wool offered showed a decided improvement in quality and get-up generally. Experts agreed that the woolgrower is apparently" realising that better net results are "obtained for wool that is carefully prepared for the market. The bulk ; of the wool was of light condition, and! there was a larger proportion of finer i wool than is usual at the Auckland sales. Owing, no doubt, to the severe winter experienced in some districts there was a considerable percentage of tender wool on offer. . As anticipated, the principal rise in | price affected the medium to lower quality crossbred and bellies and pieces. Compared with the opening sale of last season, medium and coarse crossbred, which | constituted the bulk of the catalogue,: showed an increase of 3d to 4d per lb., : bellies and pieces 5d to 7d per lb. It is ; considered that the sale was probably the | most satisfactory held in Auckland, and the appreciation in prices is most encouraging from the growers' point of view. The average price per bale realised at the sale has not yet been computed. The average price at last season's opening sale was £14, giving a return to the growers of the district, of over £150.000. This year's return will be substantially greater and is expected to exceed £200.000. The Top Prices. The quantities offered by the different firms were as follow: — Bales. A. Buckland ,md Sons, Ltd. ... ... 1.421 Farmers Co-cn'erativis Auctioneering Company, Ltd. . . ... • ■ 2.400 Dalgety and Co. "Ltd.. in conjunction with the North Auckland - Farmers' Co-operative Co., Ltd. . 4,200 Few Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Co.. Ltd. ... .. .. 2,268 Abraham and Williams, Ltd. . .. 1.700

Total 11 983 The top price was 24|d. obtained for three bales of halfbred of the W.G.R. brand, nine bale.? of the same brand bringing 24£ d. It was worthy of note that the same brand realised top price at the corresponding sale last year, the figure being 21£ d for seven bales. Other leading prices were:— Brooklyn, three bales Southdown hoggets, 181 d; K over Kara, five bales Corriedale, 20Jd; P over Tunaroa, three bales •hoggets, 17£ d; Fordell, four bales halfbred, 19£ d; Opiako, seven bales crossbred, J..T.F. over K, four bales crossbred, 17d; Huatuna, eight bales halfbred, 22£ d; S.L. over Tup* Tupe, three bales pieces, 12£ d; D.K. over Tawa, three bales halfbred, 19|d; 14 bales crossbred, 17£ d; T.B, over Owi. four bales hoggets, 17-id; E.M.D., three bales Southdown, 18|d: Mama over E.8.H., four bales Corriedale, 2Q£d; Pouerua, six bales pieces, 14|.d; Poutu, three bales hoggets, 17d; Ngaheia, six bales Romney hoggets, 17d; 0.8. over Putiki, five bales fine crossbred, 21^d; Esslin, two bales fine crossbred, 20^d; o;.iekura, three bales hogget, 17jd; B.R. over Beuton, 12 bales crossbred, 17d; Teroa, three bales crossbred, 17^d; The Hills, 20 bales fine crossbred, 17^d; L. and G.. three bales iJouthdown, 21|d; Motunui, nine bales* Southdown, 21^d; Lancewood, five bales hogget, 17d; Edwinstone, three bales Southdown, 233 d; Dunmore, three bales lambs, 18jd; T.A., three bales Shropshire.- 15Jd ; Kainui, three bales lambs, l&Jd;' A2, four bales fine crossbred, lo^d.

Baoge of Quotations. The following table gives the range of prices realised on Saturday compared with those of the opening salo last season :— 1923. 1922. d. d. d. d. Halfbreds— / Super . . 22 to 24} 20 to 214 Average . . 19 to 20} 17 to 19 Fine Crossbred— Super . . 18 to 19} 13} to 17} Average . . 161 to 17 Hi to 13 Inferior . . 14 to 151 3 to 10 Medium Crossbred Supfer . . 15 to 161 11 to 134 Average . . 12 to 14} 8} to 9} Inferior .. 10 to 11} 6J to 7 1 Coarse Crossbred— Super . . 11 to 12} 7} to 8} Average . . 10 to 11 6} to 71 Inferior . . 9 to 9} 6 to 7} Low .Crossbred Average . . 9 to 10 6 to 6} Hoggets— Super . . 16 to 17} 13 to 14 Medium . . 14 to 15} 9} to 11 Inferior . . 12} to 14} . 7} to 8} liatnb3— Fin* .. 15 to '182 12} to 131 Medium .. 13 to 14} 9 to 12 Sdy. and inf. 7 to 10 3} to 0} Crutchings ' , Med. to good 0} to 8 4 to o Sdy. mid inf. 5 to 6} 2} to 3} Bellies and Pieces— Good to surer 12 to 141 5 to 7 Low to med. 8 to 10 3 to 41 Locks— 4 to 55 2 to 2} SURPRISE FOR THE BUYERS.

OUTLOOK FOR THE FUTURE. The phenomenally high range of prices obtained at the wool sale in Auckland on Saturday came as a surprise to woolbuver*. * Mr. Walter Hill, president of the Wool Buyers' Association of New Zealand, when' asked if th« prices could te taken as an indication of a world shortage of wool, said that his experience led Him to the opinion that it was not so much a question of supply and demand; *he market had always been an "in and , •ut one, and no one could tell from ' «ay to day what would happen. ■at .»,v We(>k3 ago no one anticipated such The ttC — nt . of P rices - said Mr. Hill. 2LT^^L?S was S eneral for the £ did not thinA red at Auckland, but : nounced in \fe k fi ? e «» would he pro- ! bland. the finer wool of the South' I tiS%rtcfeTn «** -struc- I «*!« to J* hold at wS. m '.^P* l of th « day, a*l the one t?iSS^V 1 on Wedneson beeember 3/thtir C ! s at Napier seem to be that Touri T " P^ ions Would price, at Auckland S «i°-, the same anticipation falls O JI P I" 1 " But an ' : opinion, and the average bav. ***"?* ~ eIUIM, when questioned tb n yer - is 5 «- ■ adopt a \Vwait.and.;.°\S. e » to -: .„e»t sale in Auckland is £ l lud «- The Klehruary 8, and no 2§x&i££*£'M. on ! 0 to bow J^Hgafyg*^