EMI hits 1609c but price recovery will attract more wool onto the market

The Eastern Market Indicator (EMI) finished the week on 1609c, up 67c on last week's close.

A relatively small offering of 27,458 bales also helped add pressure to prices.

China was the dominant buyer with support from India and Europe.

One of the key messages from the Nanjing Wool Market Conference in China last weekend was that the Chinese greasy wool pipeline was almost empty.

And once it was replenished nobody was sure in which direction the wool market would head.

AWEX said prices rose from the opening hammer of this week's sales.

Main buyer interest was in the 18.5 micron and coarser range, resulting in these wools getting progressively dearer during the first day of selling, rising by 60 to 90c in the east. In the west the rise was 90-100c.

The EMI rose by 61c for the day. The second selling day was more subdued with only marginal increases recorded. The EMI rose by a further 6c.

Sellers were keen to grab the higher prices, resulting in a national pass-rate of only 7.6 per cent.

The fleece market softened toward the end of the series with Fremantle recording falls of 30 to 70c on the final day.

Skirtings followed a similar path to the fleece, strong competition helping to push up prices by 40 to 70c.

Next week's national offering has increased considerably as a result of the price rises with 40,999 bales rostered in Sydney, Melbourne and Fremantle.

The week's sales returned $47.35 million to growers. Sales so far this selling season have reached $424.93m.