Australian wool sales experience uncertainty driven by the Coronavirus outbreak. This comes on top of the impact that extreme fires raging in some parts of Australia will have on clip quality, as well as the general economic slowdown around the world.  Nevertheless this weeks’ sales (6 February) have seen a positive upturn with wool prices claiming back all ...

The following update from Nanjing Wool Market (NWM) in relation to Coronavirus has outlines the impact it is having on the wool industry in China. (30 January ). The NWM spokeperson says: Coronavirus has spread very rapidly now.   So far there are more than 17239 confirmed cases in China, 361 people have died and 479 people have been cured.   At the moment t...

Surprising sale results this week at the Australian wool auctions as almost all wool types and descriptions appreciated in value. Expectations were of a wool market that would be ravaged by the turmoil caused to the Chinese normal working environment by the growing Coronavirus outbreak. These thoughts were quickly extinguished though with strong European int...

Outgoing BKB Managing Director Wolf Edmayr who retired at the end of last year has been replaced by Jonah Stumpf. The position of Managing Director was announced in a statement issued by BKB Chairman Chris Louw. Mr Louw commented that this was a transparent and thorough process and that the position attracted both internal and external candidates. Jonah Stum...

  ‘There are great traditions of wool processing in Europe and Hungary, but European wool processing facilities’, says Janos Vass of Hungarowool, a leading wool exporter in Hungary. ‘Today a tender worth ten million euros is being offered by the Hungarian Government to establish a processing facility. Only four million euros of this grant is it required to b...

In its latest update AWI looks back at the 2019 trading year. This report was published before any impact statement in relation to the Coronavirus. AWI reports: As the year 2020 begins and we thankfully farewell what was a difficult year for many woolgrowers, we examine the current state of the global economy and the largest economies within it, given these ...

Difficult trading conditions today for most wool types as buyers were exercising caution in response to limited new business mainly out of China. Xbd Lamb’s wool continues to slide traumatically, especially ones showing even medium levels of vegetable matter. Interestingly, a good selection of mid-micron wool on offer received strong demand from the floor an...

More Australian woolgrowers who are shearing in the next three to four months are being sought by Australian Wool Exchange (AWEX) to participate in trials associated with a traceability program as has been reported in Farm Weekly. AWEX chief executive officer Mark Grave said the traceability program was being developed through WoolClip, the online and intern...

Südwolle Group, well-known spinner of pure wool and wool blend worsted yarns, expands its offering through the strategic cooperation with RENU project by ITOCHU Corporation Ltd. The partnership comprises a strategic co-development and marketing of yarns and fabrics constructed with Itochu’s RENU recycled polyester fibre blended with wool targeted for the wor...

Lesotho has resumed the exports of its wool and mohair. This comes after the National Assembly passed the Agricultural Marketing (Wool and Mohair Licensing) (Amendment) Regulation. Exports will be through South Africa’s biggest wool and mohair broker, BKB Limited. In 2018 the regulation had been passed, denying farmers the right to export the products throug...

EU lawmakers gave initial backing for a free trade agreement struck with Vietnam, the bloc’s most comprehensive such pact with a developing country. The international trade committee of the European Parliament supported the agreement by 29 votes to six, opening the way to a vote in the full parliament when it meets in the week starting February 10. It can th...

The global economy remains fragile and it should be the United States that takes the lead on creating a lasting recovery, the head of the International Monetary Fund said. “Now is another moment for U.S. economic leadership,” said IMF managing director Christine Lagarde in a speech to the Associated Press.   Lagarde acknowledged that the global economy has i...

The monthly comparisons of Total Lots, Bales and Weight for January 2020 compared with the same period last season are: -7.3%, -4.5% and -4.3% respectively. The progressive comparison of Total Lots, Bales and Weight for July 2019 to January 2020 compared with the same period last season are: -6.9%, -5.3% and -5.0% respectively. AWTA Ltd has tested 178.6 mkg ...

The non-profit organisation Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) has developed the world’s first standard for sustainably produced cashmere, called The Good Cashmere Standard. It takes the cashmere goats’ welfare into account while incorporating social and environmental standards in cashmere production. Cashmere was once a luxury product that was combed out by han...

The orders index for textile machinery drawn up by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, for the period from October to December 2019, showed an 8% drop compared to the same period for 2018. The index value stood at 92.9 points (basis: 2015=100). Orders compiled by Italian machinery manufacturers were in negative figures both ab...

The eurozone economy of 19 European Union countries barely grew at all in the final quarter of last year. An official estimate puts economic growth in the region at 0.1% during the three months to the end of December 2019. Two of the eurozone’s largest economies shrank in the period: France by 0.1% and Italy by 0.3%. However, the jobs market was in better sh...