NZ wool prices rise at auction as lower volumes bolster prices

Friday 26th February 2016

New Zealand wool prices gained at auction as lower volumes underpined prices.

Clean 35-micron wool, a benchmark for crossbred wool used for carpets and accounting for the majority of New Zealand's production, increased to $5.95 per kilogram at yesterday's South Island auction, from $5.73/kg at last week's combined North and South island auctions, and 13 percent higher than a year ago, AgriHQ said.

Volumes on offer at the sale were 38 percent lower than the same time last year, and 89 percent of the total 8,616 bales were sold, AgriHQ said. The country is forecast to have a 4.4 percent drop in wool auction volumes this season as the national wool clip declines in line with lower sheep numbers and after farmers focused more on meat producing sheep breeds.

Most wool types lifted in the latest auction, with the exception of lambs wool which declined to $6.60/kg from $6.73/kg last week, AgriHQ said.

Trade data published today showed the value of New Zealand wool exports jumped by a third in January to $59 million, compared with the same month a year earlier. In the 12 months to the end of January, wool exports rose 9.9 percent to $828 million, making it the country's 14th largest commodity export.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

Comments from our readers

No comments yet