Friday, March 29, 2024

Show-day live auction pays off again for fine wool growers

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Buyers used the tail end of the fine wool auction season to bid prices sharply higher at the live auction at the New Zealand Agricultural Show in Christchurch on Thursday.
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Many growers held back supply for the sale because of its increasing popularity in the last couple of years, a risky strategy in a volatile market and one that paid off this year, PGG Wrightson’s South Island sales manager Dave Burridge said.

Fine wools were typically up between 5% and 8% on the previous sale a month earlier, helped also by the high wool quality.

He suggested the live auction might attract even more interest next year. 

Melbourne-based trading group Australian Merino Exports (AME), very active in Christchurch since early September, was again prominent, buying about 650 bales, nearly half the fine wool offering. 

Apart from its own buying, AME pushed other bidders higher to procure lots. Italian and other European buyers were also active, Burridge said.

The show crowd was able to watch the action from a viewing platform beside the large showroom window, with wool detail and prices displayed on a computer screen.

There were about 8000 bales on offer with 5000 bales of crossbred wool and the balance split between fine and mid-micron wools. PGW put up more than half the offering.

Burridge thought the fine wool section was the second strongest sale of the season, just behind an early September auction.

Mid-micron wools also sold well, being 4% to 6% dearer. The clearance rate on the fine and mid wools was very high.

The finer end of crossbred wools did well on the day, being 2% to 4% better in price than at the October 24 sale. Crossbred 35 micron and stronger was largely unchanged to slightly lower, reflecting the continuing struggle for that part of the market.

Turnover for the five-hour sale was $7.2 million.

Sales, all by micron, price/kg clean, full wool, good to average colour: 25, $14.50, up $2; 26, $11.40, up 55c; 27,$11.23, up 54c; 28, $10.47, up 88c; 31, $5.39, up 51c; 32, $5.27, up 57c; 33, $4.52, up 15c; 34, $3.20, up 15c; 35, $3.10, down 4c; 36, $3.21, down 1c; 37, $3, down 10c; 39, $3.06, down 6c. Crossbred second shear: 33, 3-4 inches, $3.30, up 2c; 2-3 inches, $2.81, up 1c; 35, 3-4 inches, $2.88, up 5c; 2-3 inches, $2.70, up 10c; 37, 3-4 inches, $2.97, up 7c; 2-3 inches, $2.64, up 9c; 39, 3-5 inches, $2.83, down 2c; 3-4 inches, $2.77, down 3c; 2-3 inches, $2.60, up 7c. Merino, best topmaking styles: 15, $23.50, up $2.40; 16, $22.60, up $1.05; 17, $22.10, up 46c; 18, $21.50, up 92c; 19, $20.40, up 31c; 20, $19.52, up 73c.

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