AUCTIONEER'S REPORT.

Press, Volume XXXVI, Issue 5068, 5 December 1881, Page 2

AUCTIONEER'S REPORT.

The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, report on the produce markets for the week ending Ist December, as follows:—Wool—The opening sales of the season, held on 29th and 30th November, passed off with great animation. Altogether about 2700 bales were catalogued, of which 2000 found buyers.

At our sale we submitted a catalogue embracing 422 bales and 80 smaller packages. The favorable reportß of the London sales now in progress have doubtless tended to strengthen the market here, which may be characterised as firm at the following quotations .— Merinos—Faulty to medium quality, 7£d to 8d; medium to good, BJd to 9d; light fine combine, 9is to 10-.

Crossbreds-—Wasty, coarse and heavy, 6_-d to 7id; fair to medium, 7_-d to B£d; good to superior, BJd to 9__; a few special lines of bright half-bred, light in grease, realised 9fd to 10id. The clip generally is much lighter in the grease than last year, and if farmers would only exercise more care in keeping locks and heavy belly pieces apart from the fleeces, the standard of prices would range higher. Sheepskins—Owing to the large quantity of broken wool to be offered at Thursday's Bales we consulted the convenience of buyers, aud postponed our usual sale until next week. The other salesmen had a good attendance, and report that satisfactory prices were obtained, viz. : — Butchers' crossbreds, 5j lid to 6j 9d; second quality, 5s to 5s lOd; do merino large, 5s 8d to 6s 9d; seoond quality, _9dto 5s 9d; medium, 3s 6d to _ 8d; pelts, 9d to Is 4d, according to size and quality; lambskins, Is 3d, Is 7d, Is lOd and 2s.

Hides rnle at about the same rates as have lately prevailed—i.e., 4d to 4id, according to size.

Tallow—Well saved of good color realised 24s to 25s per cwt. We cleared our entry of rough fat at 2J_ to 2i_ per lb.