New Zealand Wool Prices Hit 30-Year Low

Auckland, New Zealand, April 13, 2009--Wool prices in New Zealand fell to the lowest in 30 years as the slump in global construction sapped flooring demand for new buildings and home renovations.

Coarse crossbred wool, a heavy grade accounting for about 80 percent of New Zealand's output, dropped 3.9 percent to $1.96 a kilogram at auction, based on a New Zealand Wool Services International Ltd. index.

"Farmers are at the bottom of the pile" when it comes to wool returns, said Don Nicolson, president of Federated Farmers. "Some shearing bills are now more than the receipts from the wool."