NZ wool price rises 2.9% on strong demand

New Zealand crossbred wool, which accounts for the majority of the country's production, increased 2.9 percent in the latest auction on strong overseas demand.

The price for 35-micron clean wool, commonly used for carpets, rose to $5.30 per kilogram at this week's auctions, from $5.15/kg the previous week, according to AgriHQ. That's 10 percent ahead of February's average price of $4.80/kg for the past five years.

Some 96 percent of the 14,000 bales on offer at the combined North and South island auctions this week was sold, with strong buyer competition from China, India and Australasia as well as demand from the Middle East, Western Europe and the UK, according to New Zealand Wool Services International.

"Price pressure is continuing to be brought on by buyers in need of prompt shipments of wool," said AgriHQ agriculture analyst Ivan Luketina.

The price of lamb wool held at $6.55/kg this week, its highest level since April 2011, on relatively high volume, according to AgriHQ.

Wool is New Zealand's 14th largest commodity export.