ENGLISH COMMERCIAL.

Press, Volume X, Issue 1183, 22 August 1866, Page 2

ENGLISH COMMERCIAL.

The Boatd of Trade returns for the month of May, and four months ended the 30th April, have been issued, and again present yery favorable results. The value of the exporte for the monthlwt past was £15,366,414. •gainst £12,071,111 in tbe month of 1865, and £13,225,089 in that of 186*. For the four months of the present year the total was £62,857,579, against £47,406,818 in 1865. end £49,892,420 in 1864. In imports the article of cocoa, coffee, and corn ahow a rery large raerease, but there is a considerable falljug off m tea. Jxhe Stock Exchange Committee have definitely refused to adopt any measure calculated « to interfere with the class of 'raneactiona in tJsnk eharet that hare brought ruia upon hun« ■

dreds of families and scandal upon the country. In the opinion of the committee, it would seriously obstruct what they are pleased to term •• legitimate business" if a seller of Bank shares were to be required at the time of sale to mention the numbers of euch shares, or give other proof of ownership ; or if, having sold thfm, he were to be positively required to deliver them within a lee? time than three weeks Unhappily for the committee, however, the utter worthlessness of their opinion is, and has been for some time, in course of daily demonstration. Every respectable broker now refuses to sell Bank shares unless he has previously satisfied himself that his client is possessed of them, and, as it is found that " legitimate business" c»n nevertheless be transacted to any extent, it is evident that the kind of business that would be interfered with is solely such as is undertaken by less scrupulous persons, and which, however legitimate it may appear to the committee, is not regarded in that light by the public. The feeling is evidently widespread in the city that no delay ought to take place in the reorganisation of banking and discount establishments. The praotical stand to which financial affaire hare been brought by the late collapse eliowe in a certain serious the inconvenience occasioned by the various large suspensions. Confidence is gradually returning, but it will be some time before we can reckon on a generally improved state of things. At the general meeting of the shareholders of the Panama, New Zealand, and Australian Royal Mail Company, the report of the direotors was unanimously agreed to. The payment' of the dividend was delayed, and a resolution was carried empowering the directors to raise a sum of £100,000 by way of debentures, paying 6 per cent, to such of the shareholders who should take them up. The position of the company was held to be very cheering. The Trust and Agency Company of Australasia (Limited) announces that the halfyearly interest, at the rate of 7 per cent, per annum, payable on Ist July next, and guaranteed by the company, on the mortgage investments effeoted through its-agency, will be forwarded, on the 30th, to the registered proprietors. The meeting of the creditors of Overend, Gurney and Co (limited), passed over in a very quiet manner. It was agreed that the liquidation should be voluntary, under the sanction of the court, Messrs Harding and Turquand acting in the capacity of liquidators. A committee of supervision has been appointed, composed of Mr Kingscote and Mr Griusell for the shareholders, and Mr Charles Oppenheim for the depositors. . Mr J. H. Gurney occupied the chair, and his explicit statement was received with great attention and sympathy by J;he shareholders, who were present in strong force. This is the period when forbearanoe should be shown. The total amount of bills running on the 10th of May was £15,145,806. Since the date of suspension, the bills which have run off represent a total of £4,601,379, and between the present date and the 21et of August a further amount of £8,353,904 will mature. After the 31st of August not much more than £1,343,529 will have to be taken up, bo that about that date the actual position of the company can be ascertained. In answer to a question, it was stated that " certificates of indebtedness " will be issued almost immediately. —Petitions for winding up the business of the above company came before Vice-Chancellor Kindersley, on June 22, and as creditors to the extent of £5,139,000 (the aggregate of liabilities being about £10,000,000) had since expressed concurrence in the resolutions passed at the above meeting, his Honor made the requisite order for that purpose. A false and unfounded statement which appeared in the "Solicitors' Journal," to the effect that a petition had been presented to the Master of the Bolls to wind up the Oriental Bank Corporation, is entirely erroneous. The company which was intended to be named is the Oriental Commercial Bank. A large and moat satisfactory meeting has been held of the creditors of Messrs Peto and Betts. Mr Jackson, M.P., was in the chair, and a detailed statement was submitted by Mr Coleman, the accountant, showing liabilities for £438,375, and assets (which it was mentioned had been most carefully calculated at existing values, and with a desire to avoid all possibility of an over-estimate) of £1,562,064.. The creditors were assured that ihere was every prospect of a rapid realisation, since it was not proposed to delay the liquidation for the sake of waiting for full prices, and that the payment of every claim with interest at an early date might be considered certain. All the contracts in which the firm are engaged in England are held conjointly with other parties, Messrs. Kelk, Messrs Lucas, and Messrs Waring, who have undertaken their completion, while those in foreign countries are either secured or involve only small amounts. were, therefore, unanimously passed for the firm to continue their business under letter of licence, and with Mr Richard Fothergill, of the Aberdare Ironworks, Mr Peter Bolt and Mr Thomas Fenn, of the Stock-Exchange, as inspectors. Mr Alderman Bose then moved a vote of sympathy and confidence in the firm, who, by their long and honorable course, have contributed to the engineering fame of England in all parts of the world, which being seconded by Mr G. C. Glyn, was adopted with a warmth of feelings such as has rarely- been witnessed. Sir Morton Peto, in reply, referred to the fact that on the first announcement of their difficulties they had the offer from per' sonal friends of assistance exceeding half a million sterling. LONDON WOOXi EBPOBT, JTOB 25. The sales which commenced on May 10, closed on June 23, the quantities catalogued comprising 24,671 bales, Sydney; 72,084 bales, Port Phillip; 6732 bales, Van Dieman'e Land ; 20,071 bales, Adelaide; 2305 bales, 8-ran River; 17,161 bales, New Zealand; 15,578 bales, Cape ; total, 157,602 bales. It is remarkable as showing the extreme healthiness of our trade, that the sales opened so well, the decline being about lid to 2£d on all descriptions, except the finer descriptions of Port Phillip, which ruled 2d to 4d lower—the extreme prices paid in March for all choice descriptions leaving a fair margin for decline ; the fearful failures and panic in the city not noticeably altering bur market bids, and prices being maintained with remarkable uniformity. Of course in so long a series, and with each daily financial troubles, there were variations at each night's sale; but that this large quantity should have found ready buyers at so satisfactory a range of prices, must be extremely gratifying to all. No doubt the heavy operations of French buyers completely ruled the market, our own buyers, as a rule, bidding cautiously, and with anticipations that wool would fall considerably from opening rates; but when it became positive that nearly half the whole quantity offered would be taken by exporters, our own buyers took courage, and for the last few days of the sales the tone was better, and prices established with more firmness. Many of the large staplers who usually operate very largely at this season of the year almost abstained from buying, the low prices of all German wool at the fairs inducing them to stock heavily—circumstances there, in consequence of the war, enabling them to stock at fully 20 per cent, below last year's rates. At one period of the sales Sydney wool was very cheap; many flocks deserving higher prices from their healthy breed and careful wash did not realise the prices anticipated, the extremely low price of Silesian fleeces keeping down the prices of all good and middle Sydney. With war and dear money it is very difficult to form any decided opinion as to the range of prices at the August sales, but judging from the present tone of our market, we look for prices being fully supported for all free and well stapled descriptions ; faulty Sydney will find little favor, and be sold with difficulty at a low range of prices; the cheap rate of all fair flocks, both, colonial and German, will interfere most materially with such descriptions, and we note this in length for our Sydney friends, who often imagine that anything thence at a low price will find a ready market here.