The second part of the 27th sale of the 2019-20 South African wool season was held this week with a final offering of 5,637 bales, reduced from the original 7,320 bales, as quite a large number of bales were withdrawn during the sale. Of these, 85.5% were sold.
The wool market closed at R142.72 a kg clean, down 1.6% from the previous sale. This week saw the rand 3.7% stronger against the US dollar and 3.4% stronger against the euro, compared with the average rate at the previous sale. Thus, the market improved 2.2% in US dollar terms.
This week, better quality merino wools were in good demand, with a clearance rate of over 90% in these categories. The majority of the offering once again comprised medium-length wools, with very little short wool on offer. Although the market was under the pressure of a stronger SA currency, the market sentiment was better this week, following good results in the Australian wool market, which was also reflected in positive returns.
The major buyers were: Standard Wool SA (1,617), Lempriere SA (1,231), Stucken & Co (959), and Modiano SA (798).
The average clean prices for the selection within the different micron categories for good top-making (MF5), long fleeces were as follows: 18 microns decreased 3.2% to close at R163.50 a kg; 18.5 microns moved 0.8% up to close at R163.39 a kg; 19 microns lost 1.1% to close at R154.53 a kg; 19.5 microns weakened 4.2% to close at R149.23 a kg; 20 microns were 4.3% weaker to close at R140.71 a kg; 20.5 microns lost 2.4% to close at R142.66 a kg; 21 microns lost 3.8% to close at R136.43 a kg; 21.5 microns tumbled 5% to close at R142.13 a kg; 22 microns rose 2.2% to close at R136.26 a kg; and 22.5 microns declined 5.4% to close at R133.93 a kg.
