THE WOOL OUTLOOK.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 18086, 26 January 1921, Page 6

THE WOOL OUTLOOK.

INTERVIEW WITH FRENCH BUYERS. From France and Belgium respectivey, Mr J. I’. Dufour, and M. Leman have •j. :e to New Zealand as representatives l the firm of Henri Wattinne, Roubaix, rance, to commence wool buying op;\xtiuns in New Zealand. They arrived a Christchurch on Saturday, and left for Tiuidiu to attend the wool sales ...ere. Their chief demand will be tor tellies, pieces and lamb wool. M. Dufour said that the Belgian market hud •een very quiet until Vilely. "It may -•e that you have seen the bottom now,’ •:e said. "We have io be very careful, lu burn France and Belgium the textile na us tries are reviving quickly. We iced a certain amount uf wool, but there -■ u great deal of old stock in the marxet, and prices cannot be very strong, w e use mostly the shorter wools, for thewe we can deal with to’most advantage. There is not a large demand for New Zealand wool in France and Belgium at tue present time, especially as it is in competition with bouth American wool, of which there was such a big stuck that sellers were ready to lake alqtost any price at one time.” The arrival in New Zealand of M. Segaert. Belgian Consul for Australasia, was nieutionc- 1 as an indication that Belgium .vas looking to the development of her trade with New Zealand. France and Belgium would buy frozen meat, said M. Dufour. Before ti:<_ vh / 1. o/cH n.cat i.ad not been relished, bin they had had to take it dining the war. The d« pie- ’ ' • - < ck meant a continu"I think Labour is fairly Urttt now," continued M. Dufour, speakng of conditions in his countiy, and in Belgium. "The slowing down of trade ias made lire workers more eager for nnployment, and they seem fairiy well : austie<k with me wages now being paid, pqustry is being rapidly reconstructed. i’oiu,wouid he suri l ised to see what has .en done, especially in the textile in'ustry. x’t-cre is a fairly good market oi- manufactured goo is, but high prices iave made it ‘go slow.’ It is a period »f adjustment between war and peace.” fhe shipping strike in Australia result'd in M. Leman and M. Dufour being neid up for three weeks. M. Dufour spoke of .he 2vOV or 3WO New Zealanders waiting in Australia for boats, saying that it came very hard on some of them. Quite a number of people irom ••Ingland who were coming out to New Zealand to get work were hard hit. However, it seemed that the strike would be over in a few days. In commenting on tilts interview the LxTtelton Times says:— One of the most cheering circumstances in connection with New Zealand’s wool outiock is the continued arrival of buyers from overseas. The representative of a French tirm. an interview with whom is j>ublished in our "Commerce and Finance’’ columns this morning, supplies by his presence on these shores an answer to most of his own comments on the wool situation. France and Belgium, he suggests, have no large demand for New Zealand wool, since they can buy South American wool of the same sort at their own price. Then there is the huge stock of old wool "in the market,” evidently a reference to the Imperial Government’s holdings. M. Dufour mentions these things as a reason why wool prices cannot be very strong. but he docs not tell us why his tirm goes to the expense of sending its buyers half-way round the globe to New Zealand. Without quai veiling with M. Dufour's very moderately-phrased sum-ming-up of the reasons why wool must bq cheap, we are sufficiently optimistic to think that his presence in New Zealand is an indication of a world-wide demand .fw New Zealand wool of the qualities now on sale, and an omen of better prices. Y.'e hold no special brief for the wool-grower, and can see no reason why his business risks should be thrown on the shoulders of the taxpayer. At the same time we think the wool-growers’ interests are being made to suffer by the pessimistic chorus which is neing chanted throughout the Dominion concerning the prospects of the market.