COMMERCIAL NEWS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 48, Issue 155, 12 April 1928, Page 7

COMMERCIAL NEWS

GRAIN AND PRODUCE. THE ASHBURTON MARKET. Business in the grain and produce markets quietened down with the approach of Easter, and since then not much business has been transacted. There is still" a good outlet for really good-conditioned wheat, and any good lines offering are readily taken up. Values for milling wheat are firm, but fowl wheat is being sold at a fairly low rate. Some threshing mills ceased before Easter, but as there will probably be a fair number of stacks fit /to thresh, stack-threshing will become general very soon. , The oat market is steady, there being a few lines of Gartons offered by growers, but not many Algerians. Goo ddark iDUns are readily saleable, but it is hard to dispose of the light lines. There is no change in ryegrass, peas or chaff. The following are quotations for produce, to be paid to farmers, sacks extra, except where otherwise stated:— Wheat —Tuscan os 6d, Hunters 5s 9d, Pearl and Velvet 6s 3d to 6s 6d (all prices nominal). Oats—"A" Gartons 3s to 3s Id, "B" Gartons 2s lOd; seed Algerians 2s 7d to 2s 8d; feed 2s 5d to 2s 6d; good heavy dark Duns 2s 9d to 3s, feed 2s 4d to2s 6d. Grass Seed —Perennial 3s to 3s 3d, Western Wolths 2s, Italian 2s 3d, red and white clover 8d to 9d per lb, according to quality. Cocksfoot 7d. Chaff.—Good bright oatsheaf to £3 10s per ton. No. 1 Pens—ss 6d to 5s 9d for prompt delivery SOUTH CANTERBURY.

TIMARU, This Day. Owing to the intervention of the Easter holidays and the fact that the merchants only resumed operations yesterday, there is little to report this week as far as the local markets are concerned, prices being the same in nearly all cases as last week. The rain has suspended threshing operations, and 1 consequently the offerings have been few in the wheat' line. The few sales that have been made lately have been made -on the basis of about 5s 6d for Tuscan, 5s 9d for Hunters, and 6s 9d for Velvet, all on trucks. Fowl wheat is worth 5s 3d on trucks. There is little doing in the oat market. A Gartons are quoted at 3s Id and B's at 2s 9d, on trucks; Duns at 2s 9d to 3s Id, and Algerians at 2s 6d to 2s 9d. There is no barley offering, and the market is lifeless.

Good bright oatensheaf chaff is not in much demand, and the prices are the same as last week. It is worth £3 10s per ton, on trucks, sacks found by buyers. . There is little linseed offering. The price quoted to-day is £l3 to £l4 per ton.

The seed market continues to be fairly firm. Perennial ryegrass is quoted at 3s to 3s 6d ; Italian and Western Wolths at 2s 3d, on trucks, for farmers' dressed lines. Cocksfoot is worth 7d to 8d per lb. Potatoes are worth' about £4 5s per ton. There is very little demand for promptly delivery, as all centres, especially Auckland, Wellington and Wanganui, anpear to be well stocked for the time being. The wet weather should considerably hamper the digging of potatoes.

THE STOCK MARKETS. ADDINGTON. >. » .en.Miition i CHRISTCHURCH, April 11. Due to the holidays and the break in the weather, there was a reduced entry ill the main sections of stock today. The sale showed little change on last week's values. ' Store Sheep.—About half last week's entry, lambs showing a marked reduction. The ewes, for the most part, were from the North Island, Nelson and Marlborough. Store lambs held their values. Good ewes improved slightly and wethers sold exceptionally keenly. Three-quarterbred ewe lambs 22s Id to 24s Id, rape lambs to 245, medium lambs 19s 9d to 22s 3d, inferior lambs 16s te 17s 6d. Best two-toothed f-bred ewes 36s 6d to 40s, good two-toothed f-bred ewes 31s 9d to 34s 3d, ordinary two-toothed a-bred ewes 28rf lOd to 30s lOd, four, six and eight-toothed crossbred ewes 26s 9d to 28s 6d, inferior four, six and eight-toothed crossbred ewes 19s 6d to 25s 6d, failing mouthed 15s to 19s, medium two-toothed £-bred ewes 28s 9d to 315,, good four, six and eighttoothed ewes 31s to 35s 6d, inferior four, six and eight-toothed $-bred 21s to 245, failing mouthed £-brei. ewes 16s to 19s 6d, two-toothed crossbred ewes 27s to 29s 7d, ordinary four, six and eight-toothed crossbred ewes _,27s 9d to 295, medium four, six and eigho toothed crossbred ewes 23s to 275, failing mouthed crossbred ewes 1 16s 9d to 19s 9d. Best halfbred wethers 26s 6d to 29s 4d, ordinary £-bred wethers 24s to 265, best crossbred wethers 27s to 30s 6d, ordinary crossbred wethers 23s to 255. Fat Lambs.—29so were penned and a slightly better sale than last week resulted,' schedule rates being fully maintained. Extra prime to 35s 4d, prime 30s to 335, medium 27s to 29s 6d, light 24s to 26s 6d. Fat Sheep.—A,n average entry with little notable in the way of quality. Prime sheep sold well, but medium wethers no more than maintained late values/ A few good lines of ewes made, big prices. Extra prime wethers 32s to"37s 6d, medium wethers 28s 6d to 31s, light wethers 25s 6d to 28s. Extra prime ewes to 36s 4d, prime ewes 24s to 28s Cd, medium ewes 20s to 23s 6d. light ewes 17s to 19s ■ 6d, aged ewes lis to 16s 6d. Fat Cattle.—The entry was slightly smaller than usual and there was little of notable quality. Though irregular, it was a good sale for quality beef, rough sorts being easier. Best made to 42s per 1001 b., prime 37s to 40s, medium and heavy 34s to 36s 6d, and cow 27s 6d to 32s 6d. Extra prime heavy steers to £l9 12s 6d, prime heavy steers £l6 to £l7 15s. medium weight prime steers £l4 to £ls 15s, light steers £ll to £l3, rough steers £7 to £9 10s». Extra prime

1 heifers £8 15s to £lO, light heifers £S 10s to £8 10s. Extra prime cows to £l4 12s 6d, prime cows £lO to £ll 15s, medium cows £7 10s to £0 15s. aged cows £4 to £7. Store Cattle.—Mostly cows and bulls, which sold keenly, for the potting trade. Eighteen months steers mode to £4 15s, cows £1 to £5 10s. and bulls £3 to £7. Dairy Cattle.—A brisk sale for cows in profit, or near the drop; other sorts not wanted. Best second to fourth calvers* £9 to £l3 10s, medium £7 to £8 10s, heifers £5 to £8 10s. Vealers.—A keen sale for killable sorts. Twelve to eighteen months to £B, vealers £2 15s to £6 15a, calves 5s to 20s.

Fat Pigs.—A good sale for baconers, porkers being slightly easier. Cliodpers £2 10s to £4 10s, baconers £3 3s to £4 18s 6d. The average price per lb was 5d to 6Jd. Porkers 35s to 575. Average per lb 6d to 7^dStore Pigs.—An improved market for weaners. A number of sows in pig were forward and they sold at 35s to 50s. Weanerss 6s to 12s, stores 13s to 255, large 25s to 88s Od.

, BTJRNSIDE. DUNEDIN, April 11. Lambs alone maintained late values ai the Burnside stock sales to-day. Fat sheep and fat cattle were easier. Store cattle showed a slight decrease, and pigs were dull. Fat' Cattle—The yarding numbered 226 head of mixed quality, 'including some good consignments of.mediumweight bullocks and heifers. Prime heavy was in short supply. The opening demand was dull, and continued so. Prices decreased by from 10s to 15s per head. Good quality medium-weight and light prime bullocks made from £l2 to £l7 15s, heifers £6 to £lO ss, and cows up to £9 and £lO. Light prime and medium beef was worth up to 37s' per 1001 b, heifers 32s 6d, cows and light heifers 22s 6d to 255. Fat Sheep—Moderate quality was shown in the yarding. The proportion of medium and heavy ewes was 'arge, while there were some few pennings of fair wethers and young ewes. There was a good sale for heavy wethers at values ruling a fortnight ago. No improvement in the demand for ewes was shown in the. early stages of tbo sale. The market generally improved for the best wethers from Is 6d to 2s towards the close of the sale. heavy wethers to 425, prime 35s to 3 Q s, medium 28s to 335, light 21s to 245, extra heavy ewes 31s to 34s 3d, prime 25s to 275, light 14s to 16s 6d. Prime weThers sold at 6d per lb, heavy sorts s£d, prime ewes 4sd, light and aged Bjd to 4d

Fat Lambs—The quality was an impiovement on recent yardings,. some prime heavy sorts being included. There was a good demand for all finished lambs at values on a par with l-hofo of last week. Prime heavy lambs 32s to 34s 3d, prime 29s to 31s, modi un 25sto 27s 6d, unfinished 21s to £3s 3d. Prices were equal to lOd per lb. Store Cattle—There was a fair yarding of store cattle, comprised of 'he usual cows and yearlings, and some fair to good three-year-old .and four-year-old bullocks. The demand for Ihe best bullocks was very fair. The best plain sorts were somewhat dull. Best three-year-old and four-year-old bullocks £9 5s to £9 17s 6d, medium £8 to £9. Backward steers were 7s. (Jd per head cheaper than they were last week. Cows were also back. pigs—One hundred .and forty nine fats and 41 stores came forward'. Pr'cvs for stores were improved, while fats remained about the same as last week Porkers 7d per lb, baconers sfd. LONDON WHEAT MARKET. . LONDON, April 10. For wheat cargoes the market is firm, occasionally, higher, but a holiday tone prevails. A* shipment of 2713 tons bv the Dunaffhead brought 53s 10£d. " Parcels are in poor request at an advance of 3d. Manitobas, ex Themistocles, sold at 53s 3d; Glasgow, ex Astvanax, at 53s 3d. 4t Liverpool, futures are quoted: — May 10s 6id per cental, July 10s Bfd, October 10s BJd.—Australian Press Association, United Service.