21 Nov 2008

Fine wool prices up

6:10 am on 21 November 2008

There's been some recovery in fine wool prices at this week's North and South Island wool sales, but coarse wool prices have fallen further.

Since the previous sale two weeks ago, New Zealand Wool Services International says the New Zealand dollar has dropped between 3% - 9%against the main trading currencies.

It says the effect of that fall, coupled with recent strengthening in the Australian market and greater interest from China, resulted in prices for merino wool lifting by 6% - 12%.

The same factors saw 28.5 micron and finer mid-micron wools strengthening by up to four percent.

Crossbred hogget wools lifted by 1% - 3.5%.

But limited demand for coarse carpet wools caused prices for those types to fall by up to 2.5%.

More than a quarter of the 24,000 bales up for auction were passed in.