COMMERCIAL Review Of Week’s Stock Exchange Transactions

Press, Volume C, Issue 29609, 4 September 1961, Page 18

COMMERCIAL Review Of Week’s Stock Exchange Transactions

[Bp Our Commercial Editor)

After the firmer note of the previous three weeks, share prices in New Zealand resumed their downward trend last week.

Turnovers were again small. Christchurch figures showed little change from the previous week’s, which were well below the total for the week ended August 14. The figures for each of the last two weeks are the lowest for six months.

Although turnover was down, it was not a dull week on ’change. A big take-over bid in Australia, and some interesting company announcements in New Zealand, produced immediate reactions in the prices of individual shares.

Australian share prices showed little change on their home markets. A Melbourne cablegram says that values were helped by good prices for wool at the opening sales of the season there.

There were more rises than falls in Australia in quiet trading. On Friday the market closed with prices for most market leaders fractionally lower than a week earlier.

In sympathy with the lack of activity on their home 1 markets, Australian shares were very quiet in New Zealand. As in Australia, more of the market leaders showed fall‘s—-mainly small—then rises. Huddart Parker The big news of the week concerned the rival bids for Huddart Parker. Commercial and General Acceptance raised its original bid for Huddart Parker but Bitumen and Oil Refineries of Austra- , lia tapped the second C-A.G.A. offer by 4s. Directors of Huddart Parker did not take long to announce their acceptance of the offer for their own shares, and to recommend the offer to other : shareholders. B.OHAL. is an oil process- ■ ing firm and road construe- : tor, with a controlling interest in Petro-Chemical i Holdings. Forty per cent, of <

8.0.RA.L. capital is held by California Texas Oil Corporation. New Zealanders will await with interest the announcement by B.OH.AL. of their intentions regarding Huddart Parker’s trans-Tasman shipping service. Huddart Parker’s shipping activities have for some years been virtually subsidised by the company’s dividend income from its large portfolio. It seems likely that the B.OJI.AL. reorganisation of the Huddart Parker activities will entail the disposal of some of the assets. Brewery Deal L. D. Nathan shares and Innes Industries - shares responded promptly to the announcement of the disposal of their half interest in Consolidated Hotels, Ltd., owners of Waikato Breweries, to New Zealand Breweries. The deal involves the

issue of 160,000 new £1 ordinary Consolidated Hotel shares to New Zealand Breweries at an undisclosed premium. Among the New Zealand shares traded last week, 56 closed at lower prices and 47 at higher prices than the orevious week. Apart from L, D. Nathan and Innes Industries. only Tekau Knitwear, Ultimate-Ekco, and Whitcombe and Tombs made appreciable gains. Newton King bonus issue, Claude Neon, K.P. Drugs, Farmers’ Fertiliser, Phillipips and Impey, United Empire Box, and G. H. Scales each fell Is or more. Generally speaking, the 'market leaders were weaker and the undertone of the market was uncertain.

Trading in Government stock was again quiet last week. Yields to maturity on Government stock traded in Christchurch last week were as follows:

Three per cent., 1960-S3, £4 16s 5d per cent, and £4 16s 8d per cent. Details of transactions on the Christchurch Stock Exchange last week were: Government stock, £ 1600 (against £l3OO the week before); local body and company debentures, £ 1500 (£5200); preference, 4458 (500); banks, 54 (.122); breweries, 300 (3200); building societies, nil (400); frozen meat, 880 (880); gas, 106 (100); insurance, 500 (1000); loan and agency, 150 (2050); shipping, 1200 (nil); woollens and textiles. 3625 (4119); Australian, 8225 (8239); New Zealand. 16 320 (16,862); mining. 1550 (650); unlisted, 213 (806); totals. 37,581 (38,928).