Summer doldrums slow fur markets

SANDY PARKER REPORT, VOL. 32, ISSUE 21, JULY 7, 2008
The following extract is reproduced with permission from Sandy Parker Reports, Weekly International Fur News. Sandy Parker has been covering the fur industry for more than four decades. For most of that time he has published a weekly newsletter, detailing results of international pelt auctions, wholesale price trends, business developments and movements in the trade, as well as economic and political activities that may impact on it.
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International Fur News
with Sandy Parker
Summer doldrums slow fur markets
THE SUMMER DOLDRUMS APPEAR TO HAVE SET IN for much of the international fur trade and a vacation mood has begun to settle in over parts of Europe and North America. With most of the major North American and Western European retailers having placed their initial orders for the coming season, it is now mainly the smaller shops that are still straggling into vendors’ showrooms, a process that may take a little longer this year because of various factors, namely their carryover inventories from last year and uncertainty as to how consumers may be affected by current economic conditions.
Orders placed by retailers so far, both at the international fairs and privately with individual vendors, reportedly are down from this time a year ago, reflecting retailers’ increased conservatism. So far, this can only be described as a Western phenomenon, because the Eastern markets have yet to move into high gear. Russian and Chinese retailers traditionally wait until closer to the season to make their commitments. However, given the booming economies in these and other Eastern European markets, there is every reason to expect retailers in those areas to plan for further increases. And, considering that those markets now consume the bulk of the world fur supply, any drop in Western consumption is not likely to affect the skin price structure.
MORE LIKELY TO IMPACT PRICES WOULD BE A DECREASE IN SUPPLY. Just such a scenario is now viewed as possible if the Chinese and Russian markets continue to expand. As previously noted, there are reports that China’s mink farms have reduced production drastically because of high feed costs and other problems. There are no official figures, but trade estimates are that Chinese production has been cut by 25% to 30%. Estimates are that this year’s crop could be down by 6 million to 8 million mink.
IN THIS ISSUE:
Summer Doldrums Slow Markets
Sour Economy Curbs Planning
’09 Mink Supply Could Be Off 10%
Drop Seen Bringing Price Hike
Auction Clearances Called Good
For extracts from back issues of Sandy Parker Reports see News Index. Subscribers can access an archive of complete issues at www.sandyparker.com.
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