WEEKLY MARKET REPORT Week Ending 27th March, 2020 AWEX Northern Micron Indices Comparison
WOOL SALES STILL ON!! In the midst of Covid-19 engulfing the globe the wool market managed to keep its head above water as the AWEX EMI ascended by just 4 cents to 1442. In US$ terms the rise was significant (up 53 cents to 854), this due to the upward shift in the FRX to 59 cents - up by 3 cents (6%). Merino fleece < 20 micron added 5 to 40 cents with 21s and broader falling by 25 cents. Skirtings also tracked upwards by 10 to 20 cents while cardings continued on their slide as the MCI fell below 1000 to 987, off by 17 cents. Crossbreds had a solid sale to finish unchanged. Reports from China say that all provinces bar Hubei (where Covid-19 originated) is back to full production but, due to lockdowns and restricted travel, consumer spending has collapsed by 30% in the past 6 weeks. In news from Italy, after trying to keep mills open for the foreseeable future, the decision was made to close all topmaking plants, woollen mills and spinners and weavers. As the world tries to comprehend the magnitude of the effects on everyday life from Covid-19, wool sales will continue. After the government’s announcement earlier in the week that auctions would cease, clarification today from the Dept. of Agriculture announces that livestock and wool sales could continue under the strict social distancing and hygiene practices as they are deemed an essential part of the Agricultural supply chain. Wool sales have moved from the sale rooms in each centre to the showfloors to allow sufficient space between buyers and auctioneers with sales to be restricted to 2 days (Tuesday/Wednesday) leaving Thursday free in case a centre has to cease selling 1 of the other 2 centres can sell their wool to avoid a build up and backlog of quantity. Australia will be the only country to offer wool to the world as South Africa and New Zealand have suspended wool sales for the next 3 weeks. Also released today was new protocol for shearing. (Both these documents in following email for your viewing.) Many participants in the trade are also exploring other avenues of selling in case wool sales are forced to stop. All avenues of technology that can trade wool on electronic platforms for online selling are being closely monitored and several methods have already undergone trial should the need arise to convert to these methods of selling. We are still hearing that the market has far more potential to fall than rise and, given the situation in Europe and North America with borders closed and lockdowns of cities and countries in full effect, consumer spending will take massive hits which could result in a wool market losing far more than the 10% we’ve seen to date. Southern Aurora Fwd Prices
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Main Buyers (This Week)
|
Please click here for Shearing Operations Protocols