COMMERCIAL

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25740, 28 February 1949, Page 8

COMMERCIAL

STOCK EXCHANGE ' ’ WEEK INVESTMENT TRENDS REVIEWED (By Our Commercial Editor.) Business during the w’eek showed an appreciable improvement on that recorded for the previous week, although sales were not particularly well spread in the miscellaneous section. Once again mining shares did not attract interest. Price movements were fractional. Prices in the main were again slightly easier and falls outnumbered rises. Scant business apears to have been transacted on the .Australian exchanges and prices were generally a little lower. The latest quotations from London showed very little alteration, but quotations appeared more or less nominal. With Australian and English markets quiet and to a degree easier, it is natural that these conditions are reflected slightly in our own markets. Turnover for the week at 7419 shares was 1976 up on the previous week. Details are as follows, the previous week’s figures being in parenthesis:—Government stock, £16,890 (£8415); bank shares, 800 (18); breweries, 600 ( 250); frozen meats, 600 ( 742); gas, nil (376); insurance, nil (565); loans and agency, 2281 (104); shipping, 295 (1500); woollens, 254 (420); miscellaneous, 1970 ( 877); unlisted, 525 (650). Turnover in the Government stock section was about double that of the previous week, and prices were firm to firmer. Towards the close of the week, however, more sellers appeared. Commercial Bank of Australia shares had business on the closing day at 21s—an advance of 6d. Nationals of New Zealand eased 6d to sell at 555. Quotations for other banking shares showed little alteration. New Zealand Breweries sold, at 48s and there were further buyers at this figure. Ballins Breweries sold unchanged at 30s on the closing day. In the frozen meats section there were firm buyers throughout the week for Canterbury Frozen Meat Company’s shares. New Zealand Refrigerating contributing shares were unaltered with business at 18s. Sellers predominated in the insurance section throughout the week and their limits in the main were slightly reduced. In the loans and agency section there was a comparatively large turnover. New Zealand Farmers’ Co-operative preference were active, both A and B shares being traded at the unaltered figure of 955, and the company’s ordinary shares sold unaltered at Ils 4d. The company’s secured deposit stock had business at £lOl. A fair-sized parcel of Wright, Stephenson preferences sold at 255.Union Steam preferences, a stock which has been fairly active of late, was turned over at 30s 6d and an odd lot sold at 30s 3d. Kaiapoi Woollen ordinaries were firm with business at 26s 6d. Oamaru Woollens improved fractionally to sell at 37s 9d. Miscellaneous Section In the miscellaneous section Farmers’ Trading shares improved 3d to sell at 38s 6d. New Zealand Forest Products ordinaries were unaltered when traded at 5s lOd. Claude Neon, New Zealand, had their first local business for some time to sell at 475. New Zealand Drugs were steady with sales and sellers at £5. Mason, Struthers were easier on last business when they sold at 27s 6d. The 14s paid shares in the same company sold at 17s 9d and the 10s paids changed hands at 13s 6d. An odd lot of Sharland and Company’s shares was traded at 48s 3d. Skellerup Industries preferences were fractionally easier with business at 225. Woolworths New Zealand preferences improved to sell at 425. Dunlop New Zealand preferences sold practically unaltered at 21s 6d. Colonial Sugars were the only Australian shares to be traded in this section during the week, and they confirmed recent easier quotations to sell at £53 15s. In the unlisted section Reid Rubber 15s paid preference shares lost ground slightly to sell at 16s 3d. Whakatane Board Mills were also easier with sales at 20s. Beaths Is paids were unaltered with business at 37s 6d.