Good coloured crossbred wools of all types are meeting with positive demand especially finer adult types, hogget and lambs’ wool. The crossbred wool market for these types seems to have finally bottomed out to usher in a recovery, albeit a slow one.

Through the coming months the new season’s wool should continue to be well received by buyers.

However, a significant quantity of discoloured wool continues to come forward for sale either new wools subject to humid colouring conditions or old stocks that have been held back from sale for some time. Wools held in storage for a degree of time will tend to decline in colour readings hence become more discoloured. The poorer the colour at shearing time the greater the propensity for increased colouring when held in the bale. Prices for these types have declined and these wools especially the worst coloured ones are proving extremely challenging to meet any degree of demand.

Meanwhile, in the fine wool sector, prices for Australian wool after easing through early May have recovered a large degree of these previous price declines. New Zealand fine wool is off season at present and based on excellent growing conditions, the quality of New Zealand’s fine wool clip this year should again be outstanding. Therefore, when they do go back to market, from July, fine wool growers, of both merino and halfbred, should again find their clip well sought after.

Grant Edwards, 

General Manager

PGG Wrightson Wool