BUYER demand before the mid-year auction recess pushed wool prices higher this week.
Australian Wool Exchange market information manager Lionel Plunkett said this week was the last auction buying opportunity for wool buyers for nearly a month, as next week is the beginning of the annual mid-year three-week recess.
"Any wool required for export orders during that time, needed to be purchased this week, pushing demand higher, as exporters fought hard over the wool on offer," he said.
Nationally there was 35,262 bales available, when compared to the previous season there was 1320 more bales offered, an increase of two per cent.
"The increased demand helped to push prices higher across most Merino fleece types," Mr Plunkett said.
"The individual Micron Price Guides (MPGs) across all three centres generally rose by five to 92 cents a kilogram, the 17.5-micron MPG in the south recording the largest increase for the series.
"The only MPGs to fall for the series, were the 18.5 to 19.0 in the North and South which recorded 5c/kg to 17c/kg falls."
Mr Plunkett said the rises in the MPGs helped to push the AWEX Eastern Market Indicator (EMI) up by 18c/kg for the series (the EMI closed the week at 1134c/kg) and this was a 1.5 per cent rise.
"When viewed in US dollar terms the increase was slightly higher, the EMI rose by US14c/kg to US787c/kg, a rise 1.8pc," he said.
"Most sellers were again keen to accept the prices on offer, the national passed in rate was only 6.2pc.
"The EMI has now risen for two consecutive weeks, recording positive movements for the first two weeks of the 2020/21 selling season, gaining 24c/kg over this time.
"The crossbred sector recorded very little change, most crossbred MPGs were unchanged from the previous week, only the 26.0 micron MPG in the South recorded movement, a 50c/kg increases in this MPG equated to a 6pc rise."
The annual mid-year three-week recess begins next week and sales resume in the week beginning Monday, August 3.
Have you signed up to The Land's daily newsletter? Register below to make sure you are up to date with everything that's important to NSW agriculture.