CASHMERE MARKET REPORT
OCTOBER – NOVEMBER 2019
CHINA
In October, the price of finer type cashmere decreased again by about 10%, but with a consistent regain in November. Compared with last year’s 2018 October to November, the price of cashmere fibres reduced around 30%, due to a weak market. On top of that, the production volume is a bit higher than last year. In this case, the supply is higher than the demand. On the opposite, the price of lambs in 2019 is much higher than last year, which means farmers can compensate their revenue by selling mutton. Since the cashmere is easy to be stocked, the farmers are waiting for better prices to sell. The US is the largest market for exporting Chinese cashmere. Due to the trade war with the United States, taxes for exporting cashmere to the USA increased. As the economy becomes weaker, the market for cashmere continues to be very bad.
MONGOLIA
Also, in Mongolia, the market has come to a standstill without significant movements. After the continuous decrease in prices between September and October, the prices are now stable. Compared to November 2018 the general prices have dropped by around 10 to 15%.
MIDDLE EAST
The market in the Middle East has been completely stuck, with no transactions. Chinese traders approached the market in November hoping to use this quiet situation but could not convince traders to sell at their desired prices and left leaving a low bid which has not been met by any seller.
Prices are down in local money but still high in terms of hard currency, which still leads to Middle Eastern dehaired cashmere prices being relatively competitive with Mongolian prices.