The Australian Wool Production Forecasting Committee’s (AWPFC) estimate of shorn wool production for the 2024/25 season is 280.1 Mkg greasy. This is 11.8% lower than the 2023/24 and confirms the forecast made in April 2025. Committee Chairman, Stephen Hill said that “the 2024/25 estimate reflects the continued drought conditions in western Victoria and South Australia and the variable season in both New South Wal... Read More

This week’s auction activity at the Australian wool sales saw prices advance across all types and descriptions. The exporters and direct to mill buyers were intent to continue their positive approach to buying and most grower sale lots achieved returns of 10 to 20ac/clean kg more than the opening values. In terms of the leading market price indicator – the EMI – closed higher tat the end of the month of trading. ... Read More

The market generally tended dearer. South Island offering 6,930 bales and North Island offering 6,730 bales. Selection consisted of 25% crossbred fleece good/average colour, 34% crossbred second shears mainly good colour, 50/100mm, 7% crossbred lambs good/average colour, 14% associated oddments average/poor colour, 9% halfbred fleece, 3% halfbred oddments, 3% merino fleece, 2% merino oddments and 3% miscellaneous... Read More

After the 2nd sale of the season took place on 26 August, the third sale of the season was held today with an offering of 6 577 bales. The offering mainly consisted of fine micron wools, with 66% testing 20 micron and finer and 69,8% of the merino wools on offer being certified as sustainable. The wool market continued on its upward trend from the opening sale of the season and once again delivered good result... Read More

First launched September 2024 as a second chapter to AWI’s eco marketing campaign, Wear Wool, Not Waste has proven its success, wining a series of awards. The campaign urges consumers to consider the fibre composition of a clothing product – and choose wool. Australian Wool Innovation’s eye-catching international campaign Wear Wool, Not Waste has won a series of awards.Among them a Gold Trophy at the Internationa... Read More

Vietnam wants to follow in the footsteps of Taiwan and South Korea, but focusing on one single industry is no longer viable to build a strong and resilient economy. Beneath red banners and a gold bust of revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi’s central party school, Communist Party chief To Lam declared the arrival of “a new era of development” late last year. The speech was more than symbolic—it signalled the la... Read More

Philippa Wright, a leading figure in the Hawke’s Bay wool industry, has sold her Waipukurau-based business, Wright Wool, to WoolWorks NZ and is retiring after nearly five decades in the trade. WoolWorks Grower Direct, part of WoolWorks NZ, will take over the business. Philippa Wright began her career as a shed hand before studying wool handling at Massey University. She worked for major brokering firms including ... Read More

In April, US President Donald Trump announced he was introducing sweeping new tariffs, extra taxes that importing firms have to pay if they bring in goods from abroad. Since then some of the US’s major trading partners including the UK, Japan and now the European Union have negotiated down the headline tariff rates. The EU’s agreement cuts in half the 30% tariff Trump had threatened. But other countries are st... Read More

Australia’s sheep flock is shrinking because of the drought and is not expected to recover until at least 2027. Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) said farmers in Victoria and South Australia had been forced to sell sheep as feed became scarce. “We ask producers what the biggest impact is on their decision making and, overwhelmingly, it’s the drought, especially in the southern states,” MLA market information manag... Read More

The waiver on customs duties by India on cotton includes the elimination of a 5% Basic Customs Duty (BCD), a 5% Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC), and a 10% Social Welfare Surcharge, which together constituted an 11% import duty on cotton. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) announced this decision with the expectation that it will reduce input costs throughout the textile val... Read More

During the 2024/25 clip season, Uruguay exported a total of 41.9 million kilograms of greasy wool equivalent. Of that total, 45.4% corresponded to greasy wool, 31.7% to wool tops, and 22.9% to scoured wool. In value terms, Uruguay exported a total of USD 59.2 million in wool during the 2024/25 clip season—representing a 34.1% increase compared to the previous season 2023/24.  The main destinations for Uruguay’s g... Read More

China’s economy shows tentative signs of recovery, but a sluggish property market and geopolitical uncertainty cloud the outlook. Economists remain cautious, warning that while stabilisation is under way, a robust rebound remains elusive. Three years after a property crisis of historic proportions, China is beginning to show tentative signs of recovery. But for the world’s second-largest economy—long hailed as... Read More

The world’s tennis elite has stepped onto the courts at Flushing Meadows for the 2025 US Open, relying on a little-known Kiwi export: wool from New Zealand farms. Every official Wilson match ball used at the tournament contains wool scoured in New Zealand before being sent to Thailand, where textile specialist TTI Sports produces the fluorescent yellow felt. From there, the material makes its way into balls suppl... Read More

The European Commission has described the recently concluded tariff agreement with the United States as the best outcome achievable, but questions remain about its economic impact. Under the deal, most EU exports to the US will now face a 15% customs duty. In 2024, the US imported goods worth $606 billion from the EU while exporting around $370 billion (€318.7 billion) in return. To narrow this trade gap, Washing... Read More

This October, the Campaign for Wool proudly celebrates its 15th anniversary with a powerful call to action for consumers: ‘Check It’s Wool.’ As part of a nationwide and international series of events, the Campaign is urging the public to make informed choices and opt for wool, one of nature’s most innovative, sustainable and planet-friendly fibres, over synthetic alternatives. Launched in 2010 by His Majesty King... Read More

US tariffs of 50% on Indian goods took effect on Wednesday as Donald Trump sought to punish Delhi for buying Russian oil and weapons. The measures – among the highest in the world – include a 25% penalty on transactions with Russia, seen as a key source of funding for its war in Ukraine. India, a vital US partner in the Indo-Pacific, has shown no signs of halting purchases, calling the tariffs unfair and vowing t... Read More