AUCTIONSPLUS Wool followed the physical market to last week experience relatively solid demand for its online offering, and especially for lower-priced crossbred lines.

Brokers offered 34,513 bales of wool in physical auctions last week, and 10.9pc was passed in, as the AWEX Eastern Market Indicator rose 2 cents to reach 1860c/kg clean, due to increased fine crossbred and Merino fleece rates, but lower fine Merino prices.

AuctionsPlus commercial operations officer Ed Murphy said 149 bales were sold online, with a top price of 2505c/kg greasy or 3819c/kg clean being paid for a bale of 13.2 micron Merino fleece.

The bale had a yield of 65.6 percent, with an average staple length of 79mm, tensile strength of 26 Newtons/kilotex and 1.5pc vegetable matter content.

Most of the wool sold online last week was crossbred – 109 bales — from 27-30 microns. The top crossbred price was 779c/kg greasy, or 1037c/kg clean, two bales of 27.2 micron fleece wool with a yield of 75.1pc and 0.2pc vm.

“Looking forward there is an offering of around 40,000 bales this week and a predicted 41,000 bales the week — the remaining two weeks before the Christmas recess.

“Whilst more than last week, it is following a trend of being comparatively less than last year,” Mr Murphy said.

“Whilst it is expected the market will remain solid this week, is the upcoming volume enough to sustain overseas mills over the Christmas recess?”

Source: AuctionsPlus.