The AWEX EMI shot up 49c to close at 1,363c at auction sales in Australia last week.
The market rise signalled the largest rise for 17 months and rose 21c in US currency terms pushing through the 1,000 barrier now on 1,004c.
Strong buyer interest found the stable weekly volumes appealing as Tuesday’s Australian based offering opened relatively unchanged.
It was evident by the time the NZ catalogue was completed that more buyer urgency was present. Wednesday revealed the fireworks in the sale rooms as exporters scrambled to secure wool, and this continued to the last lot on Thursday.
The Merino MPG’s increased between 45 and 80c with selected lots being pushed to extreme levels, while skirtings pushed 50c higher on average. Cardings added 20c however the Crossbreds posted a mixed result with the 28-32 MPG’s only able to post a small increase on the past weeks levels.
With three sale weeks remaining before the Christmas 3-week recess the wool market seems set for great things coasting into the break. Many of the MPG’s broke through their 5-year highs (refer to our web site graphs). Wool has added over $1b to the Australian export economy as of this week, almost a month earlier than 2015.
Whilst there are still many challenges ahead for the sheep and wool industries, it is apparent that Australian may once again ride on the sheep’s back.
With harvest well underway this positive Wool and Sheep story must be playing on the mind of the farmers in the mixed farming zones as to why more sheep cannot be integrated into the enterprises.
-Marty Moses