The 33rd sale of the 2018-19 wool season held on 29 May saw 8,986 bales on offer, of which 94.4% were sold. The market closed 1.8% (373 points) up at R205.98 a kg clean), with the Cape Wools All Wool Indicator closing 1.8% higher.
On the currency front, this week saw the rand 3.9% weaker against the US dollar and 3.5% weaker against the euro, compared with the previous sale. The market weakened by 2% in US dollar terms. The market could have reached higher levels, was it not for the fact that greasy wool is still not being certified for export.
The market followed the recovery in the Australian wool market, supported by a weaker currency of nearly 4% against the US dollar, resulting in a sales clearance of over 94%. A fairly small proportion of long wools were on offer, attracting good competition from the buying houses. The medium and short wools were again discounted as they were mainly going to China.
The major buyers were: G Modiano SA (2,792), Standard Wool SA (2,044), Tianyu SA (1,555) and Lempriere SA (1,157).
The average clean prices for different micron categories of good top-making (MF5), long fleeces were as follows: 18 microns increased 4.1% to close at R232.52 a kg; 18.5 microns moved 4.6% up to close at R232.32 a kg; 19 microns gained 3.9% to close at R224.14 a kg; 19.5 microns strengthened by 2.6% to close at R219.42 a kg; 20 microns were 1.6% stronger to close at R216.29 a kg; 20.5 microns won 2.7% to close at R213.68 a kg; 21.0 microns recovered 1.1% to close at R216.82 a kg; 21.5 microns tumbled by 0.3% to close at R209.75 a kg; 22 microns rose 0.5% to close at 212.21 a kg; and 22.5 microns climbed by 4.8% to close at R216.46 a kg.
The next sale scheduled for 5 June 2019 will see about 10,838 bales on offer.
Source: Cape Wools
