It is 18 months since Mecardo last looked at the supply and price for wool on the very fine edge of Australian merino production. Prices for some of these categories are the best performing in the market. This article has a look at ultrafine wool supply and price.
Figure 1 shows the annual AWTA core test volumes, in farm bales, for 12 to 14 micron wool in Australia. The current season volume runs to May and has been adjusted up pro rata to give an estimate for the full season, which is not too hard as by May some 94% of the full season supply of these categories has been normally tested. The seasons run from 2012-13 to the current season.
Core test volumes for the 12, 13 and 14 micron categories will finish this season at record levels, with the 12 micron category cracking 300 bales for the first time. 14 micron will finish the season with 3,408 bales and 13 micron with 472 bales. Western Australia popped up with ultrafine production this season, accounting for 4% (12 bales) or 12 micron and 16% (75 bales) of 13 micron supply in Australia.
From a whole clip perspective these are very small volumes. In clean terms 12 micron production is around 38 metric tonnes, closer to vicuna production (see article here) than any other wool category. The good news is that the increased production is no dampening the reported demand from specialist Italian processors.
Not all of the ultrafine wool is sold through auctions. Figure 2 shows the annual proportion of each micron category sold at auction from the 2012-13 season onwards. As has been the case for the past decade effectively no 12 micron wool is sold at auction, with only around half of 13 micron wool running to auction. For 14 micron some 80% is sold at auction, which compares with the standard proportion for the whole clip of 85% although this does vary between seasons.
The Fremantle 12 micron wool ran to auction, rather than being plucked beforehand, which gave a rare view into pricing for this micron category. Table 1 shows the full season average price for all 12, 13 and 14 micron offered for sale in Australian wool auctions. There are clearly large premiums being paid for 12 and 13 micron wool.
Table 2 shows the 10 year deflated percentiles for 13.5 to 16 micron (by half micron) wool (all in averages), the average, June 2025 price and rank. The latest June price for 13.5 and 14 micron continued to have a price rank in 23% to 34% range whereas the 15 to 16 micron prices were ranked at 1% for the past decade in deflated terms. The 16 micron category has struggled most of the season with increased supply and weaker demand. As the season has progressed the 15 micron price has been worn down by increased supply and a continued weak economic backdrop to the market.
What does it mean?
Assuming seasonal conditions are more favourable in the coming year (which is not hard for Victoria and South Australia) the supply of ultrafine wool will probably shrink, after a year of record production. This should help prices for these micron categories as well as 15 and 16 micron which have been struggling under extra supply. The sale of 12 micron at auction averaged $119 per clean kg, some 50% more than 13 micron which in turn was priced at twice that of 14 micron, although it must be noted these are all in average prices with a range of qualities. This gives some insight into pricing for the very fine micron categories.
Key Points
- Dry seasonal conditions have helped to push the sub-16 micron volumes in the Australian woolclip higher this season.
- The 12 to 14 micron categories have all had record production levels as measured by AWTA core test volumes this season.
- Sales of 12 micron Fremantle wool at auction have produced a rare look at pricing at the very fine edge of the Australian merino clip.
Click on figure to expand
Click on figure to expand
Click on figure to expand
Click on figure to expand
Click on figure to expand
Data sources: AWTA, AWEX, ICS, Mecardo
