Week ending: 18 February 2016
Following last week’s small offering, volumes this week were back above 40k and in line with forecast volumes. 41,727 Australian bales were put before the trade, of which 93.8% were sold.
In addition, 885 New Zealand bales were also offered in Melbourne on Wednesday. In US dollar terms the market was generally 15-30cents dearer, except for the broader crossbreds which remained virtually unchanged. However with the AUD stepping back over 71cents, the final quotes in local currency terms did not paint the same picture, with the NRI only showing an
improvement of 4cents.
Movements in merino fleece saw slight improvements at the finer & broader edge, while there was some weakness around 19-microns. The better spec types were again in demand with selected super fine lots bringing large premiums. Skirtings were generally unchanged, while 30-32 micron crossbred slipped 10-15cents. Merino Cardings closed on a positive, up
10-20cents. Almost 50,000 bales are currently forecast for next week’s sale.