WEEKLY MARKET REPORT

Week Ending 22^nd September, 2017

AWEX Northern Micron Indices Comparison 

AWI BOARD CANDIDATES LOCKED AND LOADED!

We were very appreciative last week at the extent of support shown for the nomination of Don Macdonald as a candidate for the AWI Board elections in November. Growers have until the 6th of October to check their shareholder entitlements and their eligibility to vote. Polling will open around October 23 and close 15th November. There are five candidates for three positions. There are several issues that will form the centrepiece of candidate’s campaigns, negative press being one of them. With a market indicator at 1525, one should expect all to be rosy, but it isn’t! More in the coming weeks.

This week’s wool market was “steady as she goes” as both selling days mirrored each other with 3 cent rises in Sydney. The market in Melbourne did not fare as well to lose 4 cents for the sale, this resulting in the AWEX EMI to remain unchanged for the week at 1525 cents. The shift in US$ terms was minute, just a 1 cent fall to 1220 as the exchange rate looks to be stuck at 80 cents. Super-fine types looked to have warmed up for the 2nd designated super-fine sale of the season next week as 17/17.5s added 10 to 20 cents while 18.5 to 19.5 and 22s were in sellers’ favour with all others in buyers’ favour as the odd lot with good specs looked up to 50 cents better than their indicators while high mid-break lots attracted higher discounts than in previous sales.

The talk of a dearer market didn’t quite eventuate this week (some buyers reporting tight finance reserves before their letters of credit flow in) but all of the 400 delegates that attended the Nanjing wool conference last weekend are confident and the mood buoyant and a rise is only a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’. Local traders are comfortable operating at the current levels as prices can be passed down the processing chain. Up to the current sale volumes are 10% above last season but this could change as the prolonged dry weather has shearing well ahead of schedule and is also forcing growers to off-load sheep that aren’t being grazed on failed crops as hand feeding costs start to soar whilst hay and grain prices take off as the prospect of a decent harvest over an ever increasing area diminishes daily.

Ag Concepts Fwd Prices at 22 September 2017