The Australian Wool Production Forecasting Committee met on Wednesday 14^th November to review its forecast for the 2018/19 season. As I said in the Weekly Newsletter of 12^th October, the Committee decided to bring forward its meeting from December to November, partly in response to concern around the world about the wool supply available from Australia this season. The new forecast from the Committee is that shorn wool production will be 305 mkg in 2018/19, down by 10.8% on 341 mkg in 2017/18. This compares with the Committee’s forecast in August of 322 mkg. The Committee reduced the production level after considering the industry data for the first four months of the season. AWTA tests to the end of October were down by 9.7% for Australia and AWEX data on first hand offerings for the season to date were 13.3% lower. Some of this decline will be due to wool that was sold out of stock last season which is not available this year. Allowing for this and the tough seasonal conditions in New South Wales, Queensland, parts of South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia, the Committee decided to reduce its forecast. The lower production is due to both a decline in the number of sheep shorn and in the annual average weight of wool cut per sheep.

Further details and articles on Australian wool exports and wool prices in Australia are included in full edition of the Weekly Newsletter, available to NCWSBA members.