COMPANY NEWS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20024, 4 September 1930, Page 12

COMPANY NEWS.

Australian Drug Co., XvtiT., discloses ® net profit of £20,896 for tho year ended June 80th, a fall of £5170. Preference dividend of 7i per cent, absorbs £4708. There is no ordinary dividend this year, against 10 r«r cent - for a num ' >er of P aat years. It is proposed to place 4.2188 to reserve for doubtful debts, and £6OOO to reserve, and to carry forward £BOOO. Directors of the Aeolian Co. (Aust.), Ltd., intimato that business conditions do not justify payment of the quarterly dividend on 8 per cent cumulative shares of the company for the quarter ended June 30th. A sign of the times in Australia was the decision of the shareholders of the South Australia Gas Company to reduce the fees of directors from 1500 pampas to 1000 cuinias tt vear, contending that, as they had to accept a lower dividend, the directors should also receive lens. A motion to reduce the fees of auditors from £l5O to £IOO per annum waa rejected Marketing of by-producta had been difficult during the year owing to lack of demand and' falling prices. The year had been of unusual difficulty arising cbieflv from extra costs amounting to £48,483 duo to tho Btriko on the Maitland field. There was * Urge falling off in gas sales for the last three months, and losses were euch that the dividend of 8 per cent, contemplated by the Gas Act of 1924 had net been earned. It had been decided to pay a diminished dividend rather than increase the price of gas. Creditors of the Civil Service Co-opera-tive Society of New South Waloa, Ltd., liave decided to appoint a committee of eoveo of the largest creditors to investigate the finances of tho society. A report is to bo later submitted to F.hareholdors. Time is to bo civen to the society to effect repayment of its debts.

BURNSIDE MARKET.

CPEBS3 A.SSOCUTIOX TIUOEUI.) DUNEDIX, September 3. The Burnside stock sale to-day may be retarded as distinctly in growers' favour. There was a keen demand for most classes of stock with somo encouraging advances in Pr 'rat Sheep—The entry numbered about 2200 head, comprising some pens of eifra prime wethers, a proportion of good heavy ewes, and a large showing of fair to medium sorts. There was little or no change in prices for wetbor mutton, nod heavy ewes were, if anything, slightly easier than was the case et last sale. Handy-weight ewes were in good demand, and were about Is per head dearer. An attractive line of Kelso wethers brought as much as 42s 6d per bead, and several otber trucks of extra prime wethers made from 35s to 40s. J"rime sorts wore worth from 31s to 335, medium from 26s to 295, and light from 39s 0d to 245. Extra heavy prime owos made up to SOe, heavy from 24s to 265, and medium from 20s to 245. There was a small entry of prime hoggets, which attracted some attention, and made up to 28s for the best of them. The pig entry consisted of 87 fats and 68 stores, which sold under keen competition Baconers were worth up to lOd per lb and porkers were easily sold at from lid per lb to lljd. The total number of fat cattle forward was 237. The yarding Included some exceptionally fine lines from the sooth, the top price for which was '£2B ss, but there was a heavy percentage of light and medium bullocks and heifers. The sale opened with values 10s to 15s above those ruling last week, and little variation in values occurred throughout the sale. A small yarding of mixed quality etorn cattle was forward, and sold on a par with reccut sales.

JOIINSONVILLE STOCK SALE. [TBS PBESS Special Berries.] WELLINGTON, September 8. At the Johnsonville sale to-day an average yarding of stock was submitted. Bollocks comprised mostly primo heavy-weight cattle, which met with good competition at prices on a par with last week's rates. Wethers corn-, prised heavy-weight sheep, with o few pens of lighter sorts. Competition was good. Ewes which were of good quality met with a fair demand. Extra heavy bullocks made £l6 "s 6d to £l7, heavy £ls 6s to £ls 15s, others to £l4, extra heavy withers 33s Id, heavy 28s lOd to 29s 6d, medium wethers to 28«, light to 36s 6d, heavy ewes to 23s 6d. maiden ewes to 30s, lambs 21s 3d to 245.

WERE'S INVESTMENT TRUST.

Were'e Investment Trust, Ltd., Melbourne, his made profits amounting to £18444, and will pay p dividend of 2J per cent. The company was registered in Melbourne in 1928, with an authorised capital of £1,000.000 in 4,000,000 shares of 5s each, its objects being to engage in business similar to investment trusts in England and Scotland. Af omparatively large number of the first issue of ehares was taken up in New Zealand, and in a subsequent issue, involving 750,000 shares, increasing the paid-up capital of the company to £375,000 in 1,500,000 sharea of ss, which Messm J. B. Were and Sons, Ltd., underwrote at the close of the first year of the company's operations, July 81st, 1929, gross profits were £13,050, or, adding * profits made on realisation of securities, £17,781 lis lid. A dividend at the rate of 6 per cent, per annum was paid on old or first issue shares of the company for a period of eight months, and on the new shares for a period of five months. This absorbed £6562 10s, £ISOO was transferred to general account, £ll4B 6s 7d to Investment fluctuation reserve, and £43 was carried forward.' The transfer to reserve fund brought that fund up to £3OOO, which tho directors proposed to build up. CONSOLIDATED CLOSES DOWN. The half-yearly report of the directors of the Haurakl Mines Consolidated states that the expectations regarding tbe mine prospects, mentioned in the previous report, were not realised, notwithstanding the fact that considerable work was carried out in the region where rich specimen atone was obtained, and since tbe close of tbe halfyear it has been found imperative to ceaso all work for want of the necessary funds. Further financial assistance waa expected from the Government, but this did not materialise, and the directors, very regrettably, were forced to close down tbe mine and apply for protection for the company'a mining privileges. Three parties are now conducting prospecting operations in different parts of the mine with a view to taking tributes from the company. The receipts for the half-year ended May 31st totalled £4741 lis Id, including £448 3s 9d; balance brought forward, £2045 16s from calls, and £305 from bullion. The expenditure Included £2669 19s 6d mine wages, and £lO3l 5a 5d mine supplies.

FOREIGN EXCHANGES. (BRITISH OHICIAI. Wl&ELXSS.) RUGBY, September 2. Par. Aug. 28. Sep. 2. Paris, Jr. to £1 124.21 123.77i 123.765 Brussels, bolgas to£l 35 31.01 84.84 Oslo, kr. to XI 18.359 18.16J 18.165 Copenhagen, tar. to XI 18.WO 18.16 18.165 Stockholm, kr. to XI 18.169 18.10J 18.105 Amsterdam, fl. to XI 12.107 12.064 12.081 Berlin, Beichinaiken to XI .. 20.43 20,"9 20.39 Montreal, dol. to XI 4.866 4.86 15-32 4.86 New York, dol. to XI 4.866 4.87 4.S6 23-32 Batavia, fl. to XI .. 12.107 12.08 — Prague, fl. to XI .. 164.25 164 1-16 164 1-16 Geneva, fr. to XI .. 25.225 25.05 ' 25.04 Milan, lire to XI .. 92.46 82.97 J 92.955 Vienna, ecligs. to XI 34.585 34.45J 34.435 Holsingfors, marka to XI ... 193.25 193 15-32 193 5-16 Madrid, pesetas to XI 25.225 45.65 45.95 Lisbon, escados to XI 4.50 108* 108.25 Athens, drach to XI 375 375 375 Bucharest, lei to XI 813.6 816i 815 Bio de Janeiro, pence to milrois 4,900 4 0-16 4 11-16 Buenos Ayrea, pence to dol 47.577 40j S9i Bombay, pence to 18 17| 17J rupee .. .. , Shanghai, pence to tael . • •- SM2 18J 182 Hong-Kong, pence to dollar .. 24 17 11-16 15 13-16 Yokohama, pence to yen 24.58, 24J C4J SHARE QUOTATIONS. (xrtnrzD press electbio TELBOEAPH-•-COPYRIGHT.) LONDON, September 2. Included in the quotations for ehares were tlio following:— Aug. 19. Sept. 2. £ s. d. X s. d. Bank of Australasia 11 0 0 11 12 6 Bank of N.S.W. .. 33 10 0 84 .10 0 Union Bank- of Au&t. . k 9 0 0* 9 2 0 National Bank of N.Z. .. 6 0 0 K 1 n Bank of New Zealand. t per cents. .• 95 15 0 96 0 0 Bank of New Zealand, shares 3 14 8 2 13 3 N.Z. Loan and Mercantile, 1 per cents. .. 68 0 0 69 10 0 N.Z. Loan and Mercantile, ordinary shares 98 0 0 94 ft n