Cape Wools Weekly Market Report

Port Elizabeth – The 10th sale of the 2020/21 wool season took place today with an offering of 7 011 bales. The offering was reduced from the original 8 015 bales, with 91,5% of the bales actually offered being sold. Of the offering sold on the day, 26% consisted of certified sustainable wools (all RWS).

The market gained 1,7% from the previous sale, to close on R148,82p/kg. The Australian market jumped by 11% (AU$) on Tuesday, but retracted on Wednesday, leaving the Australian market 9.1% (AU$) up for the week, with the decrease on Wednesday creating some caution in the market. The ZA currency strengthened throughout the sale, to end 0,8% stronger against the US$, making the trading environment more challenging.

There was good competition for the better quality fine merino fleece wools on offer, with the broader micron categories dragging the market down.

The major buyers on today’s sale were: Modiano SA (2 012), Standard Wool SA (1 335), Tianyu SA (955) and Lempriere SA (821).

The average clean prices for the selection within the different micron categories for good top‑making (MF5), long fleeces were as follows: 18,0 microns increased 2,9% to close at R185,81/kg; 18,5 microns moved 1,6% up to close at R172,76/kg; 19 microns gained 0,9% to close at R161,63/kg; 19,5 microns strengthened by 2,0% to close at R151,77/kg; 20 microns was 1,1% stronger to close at R144,92/kg; 20,5 microns won 1,1% to close at R138,97/kg; 21,0 microns recovered 0,8% to close at R137,65/kg; 21,5 microns improved by 1,7% to close at R136,32kg; 22 microns rose 0,1% to close at R135,30/kg and 22,5 microns declined by 0,7% to close at R138,62/kg.

The next auction is scheduled for 28 October 2020 where approximately ± 10 052 bales will be on sale.