COMPANY AFFAIRS

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20621, 10 August 1932, Page 12

COMPANY AFFAIRS

OVERSEAS OPERATIONS. Mort's Dock and Engineering Co., Ltd., of Sydney, has declared a dividend of 2 per cent, for the year ended June 30th. This is the first dividend paid by the company for three years. Net profit of the Equity Trustees, Executors, and Agency Co., Ltd., Melbourne, for the year ended June 30th amounted to £10,072, compared with £12,277 in 1931, a reduction of £2205. The rate of dividend is reduced to 12 per cent., and requires £IO,BOO, or £728 more than the net profit, which reduces the amount carried forward to £8145. A net loss of £1795 is shown in the accounts of Newcastle Coal Mining Co., Ltd., for the half-year ended June 30th. The accumulated loss shown in the accounts is £8679. Net profits of Carroll-Musgrave Theatres, Ltd., of Sydney, for the year ended June 30th, amount to £B6BB, compared with £10,884 for the previous year. The Cascade Brewery Company, Ltd., Hobart, reports a net profit of £13,547 for the year ended June 30th, an increase of £2072 on the previous year's results. With £21,823 brought forward there is £35,370 available. It is proposed to pay a dividend of Is a share (compared with 9d last year), requiring £IO,OOO, and to set aside £750 for dividend tax. A sum of £2OOO has been transferred to reserve, so there is £22,620 to carry forward. The directors report that the local sales of Tasmanian Beweries Pty., Ltd., as well as the export trade, have been maintained almost at last year's level. They have decided to write £7162 off the value of shares in other companies out of reserves. Capital remains at £200,000, and reserves are. shown- in the balancesheet at £76,369.

STAPLES AND CO.

INTERIM DIVIDEND. ((PBBSS 'ASSOCIATION TXLEQSAM.) WELLINGTON, August 9. J. Staples and Company, Limited, advise the Stock Exchange Association that an interim dividend for the year 1932 at the rate of 2i per cent, has been declared and was paid to shareholders to-day. . The interim dividend in 1931 was 5 per cent., and the final 3J per cent., making 8J per cent, for the year ended December 31st. The dividend for 1930 was 10 per cent.

STANDARD INSURANCE COMPANY.

A SUCCESSFUL YEAR. (PKIBS 4»SOCUTIOH T«L»l*A* ) DTTNEDIN, August 0. The annual report of the directors of the Standard Insurance Company says that the income from all sources for the year amounts to £187,350 2s 2d, to which has to be added the balance brought forward from last year, £23,058 19s sd. The surplus on the year's operations, after making full provision for all ascertained losses to June 30th, payment of interim dividend, donation to the guarantee and provident fund, depreciation of securities, and the allocation of £12,000 to the reserve fund, amounts to £36,479 13s 6d. Out of this surplus the directors recommend the payment of a dividend at the rate of Is 3d per share, and to carry forward to next year the balance of £23,979 13s 6d.

The final dividend of Is 3d a share (6£ per cent.) is the same as the final last year. An interim dividend of a similar amount was paid in March, making 12} per cent, for the year, the same as in 1931. Tha paid-up capital of the company is £200,000. The net premiums ,in 1931 were £200,074, as against £283,027 in 1930. The reserves were encroached upon in 1931 to the extent of £16,297 to pay the usual 12 i per cent., but the total of the reserves was left at £357,025, or approximately £ 157,000 more than the paid-up capital.

LOVELL AND CHRISTMAS. INCREASED PROFITS. (STROM OUR OWW COaBEBPONDBNT.) LONDON, July 8. City commentators heartily congratulate the directors of Messrs Lovell and Christmas upon the substantial recovery which is indicated in their annual report (the 36th). The announcement is made of a 6 per cent, dividend in respect of the year to June lltli on both preference and • ordinary shares. In the previous year the ordinary shareholders had to go without a dividend, but oven this comparison is not fully suggestive of the actual achievement of practically doubling the profits. Net profit totalled £1,36,512, while, after paying debenture interest, directors' remuneration—this was foregone in the previous period—and allotting £4OOO to bonus and benevolent fund, the actual net profits come out at £113,000, an .advance of no less than £52,400. Reserve gets £30,000 of this. A sum of £43,438 has been taken from tho reserve for specific purposes to meet losses on Trade Loans to subr sidiary companies. The "Financial Times'' comments: "The year was one of financial disturbance and fluctuating prices. The report does not tell us how the business was affected thereby, although any advance would help to rectify tho prior diminution of commission earnings, due to low prices. The chairman's coming speech will doubtless outline the company's experiences, but whatever effect extraneous happenings may have had they cannot obscure the value of the internal reorganisation which the Board has carried out. A year ago the directors were devoting their attention to expanding turnover and decreasing expenses. The revelation of the effectiveness to date of the measures taken is the more noteworthy in that it has operated not because of, but in spite of the absence of, a return tc normal trading conditions."

BRADFORD TOPS MARKET. {vxrrza press association —by elictbio TELEOBAPH— COPYBIOHT.) LONDON, August, 8. The. Bradford tops market is quiet and unchanged. EGG SALE. Harris,' Bros., Ltd., report that the usual weekly sale of "Feather Brand" guaranteed new-laid eggs was held yesterday afternoon. Tho prices realised were:—Hen eggs, first grade (2oi or over), la 3d; hen eggs, second grade, (under 2o«), Is 2d. —6

BUSINESS STATISTICS.

MONTHLY REVIEW. The July Abstract of Statistics reviews the business tren3 of the month of July as follows : —' Following on a continued low level of general business operations as revealed by the various indices for the month of June, a degree of optimism is justified by the improved tone of the Home markets during July for certain of the principal products of the Dominion. The following remarks, however, relate mainly to the position obtaining during June. The slackening-off in business activity mentioned above probably represents this year no more, than the seasonal diminution commonly experienced at this time of the year. A further slight transference of funds from free to fixed terms of deposit oceured during the month, while the ratio of advances to deposits also moved in an adverse direction. Both movements, however, are so slight us to bo of little significance Overseas trade quietened down considerably this month, as is customary at this time of the year. Exports show the usual decline, but imports record a slight rise. Hie balance of trade, however, expressed in terms w New ZealanVl currency, was maintained in favour of tho Dominion to the extent of £606,000. This brings tho balance for the first six months of the year up to £10,200,000, a figure 29.8 per cent, above that recorded for a similar portion of 1931 (£7,900,000). The wool position abroad is worthy of some comment. At the closing of the June London sales the tone of the market was disappointing, with" little prospect of an early improvement. Later cabled advices, however lend a much more optimistic colour to the situation. The opening of the July sales saw an immediate rise m prices, with competition active and the market hardening. The improvement has been maintained throughout the sales, and good clearances have been effected. The frozen-moat trade has been well maintained in recent months, and for the month under review frozen lamb exports were in advance of tho previous month and also above tho quantity shipped during Juno. 1931. Frozen mutton was almost equivalent to the previous month's output, but somewhat below tho figure for June, 1931. The constant supply of lamb and mutton carcasses has tended to flood the Home market, with the result that values have been considerahlv depressed. Lamh, however, is beginning to disclose a brighter outlook. Shipments of butter during Juno show little slackening-oil, in spite ot the approach of the end of tho production year. Abroad, the butter market maintained a steady but quiet tom>, throughout the month, with prices (ranging about 96s to 995. This compares unfavourably with June, 1931, when New Zealand butter on the Homo market brought from 107s to 114s. Later reports, however, indicate a rising and firming tendency, nn<J 107s has actually been reached. Cheese also showed an improvement in July, but not to tho same extent. l'roduction of. butter-fat iu the Dominion continues on a high level, antl for the month under review creates a new record for June. The 1931-32 season is nil but ended, and will undoubtedly close on a level substantially above that established in the previous season. Butter-production for the present season has throughout maintained a constant lead over last season, but cheese lagged behind , m the earlier months of the yeaV, and recent stimulation has only just succeeded in bringing tho total production to date within striking distance of last season's cumulative output. Real-estate transactions, although still well below the total registered during June, 1931, have at last placed a check upon tho monthly decrease in number, and a reversal of trend is now in progress. The mortgage business is lagging behind in recovery, but already the serious depreciation of business" appears to have been checked.

Overseas Trade. Exports show tho usual diminution for this period of the year, having declined by 16.4 per cent, during June in comparison • with - the previous month. The total was, however, only 4.4 per cent, below that recorded for June, 1931. For the cumulative period of six months exports are "P in total value by 1.8 per cent, as compared with a similar iwrtion of 1931. Imports for the month show an increase of 10.5 per cent, over May, and of 3.2 per cent, over June, 1931, but for the six months of the current year indicate a decrease of 13.5 per cent, over a similar period of last year. Banking. The loug-estauiisiiect low level ot business activity still persists, as evidenced by the banking figures for June. Detjits recorded sliow a decline of 6.3 per cent, from the previous I month, and of 7.1 per cent, from June, I 1931. [ Although both deposits and adI vances declined slightly during June as compared with the previous month (the former by 0.6 per cent, and the latter by 0.2 per cent.) the greater decrease in the volume of deposits set the ratio of advances to deposits moving in an unfavourable direction once again. However, the movement is slight, and the ratio now stands at 93.15 per cent., and is an improvement on the figure for June, 1931 (95.28 per cent*).-The decline in the volume of deposits was chiefly at the expense of funds left at call with the banks, and this resulted in a decrease of the ratio of free to fixed deposits to 46.16 per cent., in contrast with a proportion of 53:96 per cent, recorded a year ago. Finance. The statistics of transactions in tlio real-estate business for the month of June reveal a promising outlook. Although very few instances of actual increases in the various aspects compared are shown, on the other hand the tremendous decreases recorded of late have been substantially cheoked. ( The total number of properties changing hands during the month was only 1 per cent, fewer than in the pre-* vious month, while compared with » year ago the decrease is equivalent to only 7.4 per cent. For the first three months. of the present fiscal year the total number of transactions was B. 1 per cent, fewer than for the corresponding portion of the previous year.

AUCKLAND MARKET. [THE PRESS Special Serried.] AUCKLAND, August 9. There are fair supplies of potatoes in the stores. The ex wharf price is from £7 10s to £8 per ton according to quality, and through store £8 ss. Japanese onions ■ are fetching 19s per crate, and local 19s per cwt. There is no change in the market for oats Tand chaff. B Oartons are quoted at 4s 4d per bushel and chaff at £8 15s per ton, with restricted business. In spite of the fact that there are substantial stocks of fowl wheat in the south holders there have at last been able to force prices up, and there has been an advance within - the last couple of days of from Id to IJd per bushel. When this rise is reflected locally; consumers will have to pay 6s 6d per bushel. The local market is ' stil! supplied with African maize, : and a ■ further shipment is expected by the Tisnareu on Thursday. Prices are: African 5s 9c!, crushed 5s 3d por bushel.

Concerns merchandising products P* good quality can develop the unparalleled sales opportunities in Canterbury most effectively and most economically through the advertising columns of The Pebsb. —•