COLONIAL QUALITIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2762, 20 February 1907, Page 8

COLONIAL QUALITIES.

THE OUTLOOK.

The past year has undoubtedly been " a good one for the sale or colonial wool, though the farther one got away from the Taw material, the worse things became From January to May we had an improving market, the highest point of the year being touched at the third series of London , Miles.* From the beginning of June to the j first week in November, slow dragging mar- j kets. had to be encountered, prices both j for merinos and crossbreds sensibly falling. . All this was due to a general fear that the : new clip from Australia would be so big ! as to be more than what the trade could j comfortably absorb. Every user adopted i a policy of going strictly from hand to i mouth and buying nothing in excess of j urgent requirements. All the while , excellent reports came to band from Aus- j tralasia, importers very early beginning to , fell forward. This caused prices to sag, ' both merinos and crossbrcde falling sen- ; •ibly. Everybody adopting a strong cheeseparing policy compelled everyone in the ' late autumn to enter the market, and as shearing was considerably delayed in Aus- | trali» owing to constant rains, the wants j of users became so pronounced that the wool as it came forward was snapped up with rare avidity. A strong reaction set in_ in October in merinos, followed by" a still more marked improvement in crossbreds early in November, the consequence i being that the price of good 40's tops has j risen fully 2d per 1b since November 6. ' When things were the lowest, topmakeis ' and importers very foolishly sold forward | for next year's delivery, the conse.quence j being that with the sharp recovery a good j deal- of money will be lost. Only this j alass of operator will have need to seriously i bemoan the results of the past year, though I with prices being forced 'down, others :an- I not altogether escape a loss. The pity j Js that those who sought to dislodge the English stapler and to force prices to a »wer basis in Australasia "and the River 'Plate cannot be made to suffer : Sy themselves. The recovery places these who have sold forward in a very ignomini- I ous (position, for nowhere can they buy | wool anything like cheap enough to fulfil their obligations without having to face a fcerious loss. j

COURSE OF PRICES FOR "TOPS."

It is impossible to survey the past without contemplating the future, and that is all the more inviting because of the experience of the past month. December has seen great activity, particularly from No"veinber 8 to December 15, this being the most active period of the whole year Spin- • ners have booked as many orders as will 6ee them well into the new year, and Bradford to-day Is busier than it has been , for a long time back. We enter upon a new year with all the' trade as hungry i for supplies as users well nigh can be, and i with stocks being in such limited compass ; . the outlook is of the most favourable cha- 1 racter. Some -seem to think that prices 1 have not yet touched high-water mark, i but that is not altogether the view of the i writer. It should not be forgotten that | at the January London sales we shall encounter a fairly big weight of new clip ' from our colonies, while every week there I is now pouring into manufacturing centres < some heavy direct supplies, which will shortly increase considerably. The delayed \ shearing in Australia has been a favourable ' factor in stimulating prices, but it is only ( •a. question of time when all the wool will \ ' be available The increase is roughly estimated between 180,000 to 200,000 bales, ' and with a 6 per cent, bank rate, it seems f to the most level-headed that the trade ' will have plenty of work to negotiate \ successfully the whole of the wool to come 3 forward.^ At the same time business is j extremely good, consumption is at the ' maximum, and nothing sticks. It look 3to f ♦he writer as if to-day's prices bade fair to I continue for some time to come, for tre ; forward sales which have been made will ' ■require a huge weight of wool. The out- ' look .for the new year is, therefore, of * the best character possible, and woolgrower,* everywhere can still look forward .with confidence to good paying prices.

Ws Colonial tops .. 54's „ ■ , .. S> » » •-• R : ":: R : ::: d. 27 26 25 21* 20.J 17J 5? June, d. 30J 29 28 25J 23J 20i 19 "2 Oct. d. 27 26* 25J 23 20 17 15.J 151 Dec. d. | 28 ' 27J 26^ , 23J , 21J ]8i 17J 16i ,