FINANCE AND COMMERCE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 103, 24 January 1908, Page 10

FINANCE AND COMMERCE.

THE .SHARE MARKET. There was a fair amount of actiyityMn (the share market yesterday, and the sales covercil, three separate classes of shares. Bank ot New Zealand shares, which have liiul some inquiry recently, changed hands at, .£9 125.-,Gd.,..-ane, there were further Buyers,at thfc'..price:,: Sellers wanted 15s. For National Bank snares buyers offered .£5 "sellers • asking In insurance shares there was a. sale of Nationals at 275. 6d v while-.buyers bid sThere was .no .change/in - shares.Equitable Building shares were"wanted at, .'•ElO, 35., but there were no declared sellers, l 1 or Wellington Trust and Loan £7 10s. was bid, and £7 12s. 6d, asked. .TJiere weresellejs.of WeK lington Deposit at 10s., Wellington Investment at 12s. 3d., and Loan and Mercantile at,ss;.fid.; 1 There were three quotations' for,-gas..shares. A bid of 7s. was registered for Palmerston North Gas, while Feilding Gas shares were on lale at 17s. Gd. Wellington 1 -Gos; shareo.. :.£lO, paid, were on the market at ,£19.25.,0r35..b(H0\y.'. ;he selling, quotation of Tuesday last,'and six-, pence below " the price', at which 1 ' the shares; were sold on Saturday last.. This .is iVery, uh.T.'fortunate for the, investor who paid the fancy price of ;El9' &.• .Gd. -Meat.sharesnverer.quiet, the only inquii 1 }-, being for third'. issiie Meat: Export'at Cos.,: sellers asking ninepence more. Gears were on sale at 505., and Christchurch Meat at £1 tl 12s. 'fid. There was no change in Manawatu Rails; buyers offered ■•1331, "sellers', quoting -1 Is. Woollen shares- were neglected. Wellington -Woollens, - ordinary- shares,"..were quoted £3 10s; the. preference shares, havo . not been quoted for. two or 'thi-ee days, which seiini's to indicate that .tho "bear "/ tactics have been stopped. There were sellers of Taupiri Coal shares at-20s. 3d., Wostport Coal, £7 165..-and Westport-Stockton, 10s. '3d. Buyers of the latter bid os. 9d: The; ordinary ..shares.-.of Sharland and Co., Ltd., changed •'hands, at.-IBs: 3d., and there, were further sellers at 18s. fid. New. Zealand Drugs were in/fair request;.at ,£2 10s. 9d. - The selling quotations were: D.I.C. Preference, 235. 3d.; Leyland-O'Brien Timber, 15s. Cd.; and Taranaki Petroleum, 7s. THE MINING MARKET- ' This market is developing a'dullness-that-is somewhat discouraging. Yesterday 'only four stocks were quoted, and there were 110 sales. Talismans have weakened, and were quoted: buyers, 505.; sellers, 51s. • Wailii shares were on sale at is as. Cel., .with up declared ..buyers. Karangahake shores . were wanted at Is. 2d., sellers asking Is. Id." Kur'.-inui-Caledomaii shares were on sale at is., with no buyers., TnE WOOL SALES. , Fuller! reports regarding the London wool sales are'a little more encouraging. The market shows a decline mainly for inferior and ,'fautly wools, other descriptions holding their own.. All the private cable messages agree that the tone, of the market is good, and that the bidding is animated. If, there is anything like a consumptive demand, that t-j say, if the buying is. to supply immediate requirements and not to build /tip reserve' stocks, there is a chance of values improving. . FINANCIAL STRAIN IN GERMANY. Germany issuffering from a severe financial strain which may, at any time, develop-into a crisis, and this fact is stimulating the interest of German officials and financiers- in the banking system of the country. An examination into the banking system is to be made at once; this means an inquiry into the position anil usefulness of the Reichsbank. I'he " Economist," in discussing this matter, gives the following information with' regard to the Imperial Bank of Germany The Reichsbank dates from an "Act passed, in tiie year 1875, shortly after the consolidation of the German Empire, anil it was intended primarily to bring order out of the chaos into which the currency systems of' the 1 different States had fallen. The German love, of bureaucracy is clearly written in its constitution, and it is in far. closer contact with the Imperial authorities than our oivn Bank of England. Its management is rather.complex— a kind of hierarchy, in which nil power is vested in the Emperor,-and delegated through official grades to the lower orders. The first and highest controlling body is the Council of Administration, appointed directlv by the 'Government, aud presided over by the Chancellor, ivho receives the. assistance of lour, colleagues, one named by the Emperor himself and three by the Federal Council. The function of this body is mainly supervisory, alii: its chief duty is to' receive periodical statements on the condition of / the bank. -Below this Council comes the Bank Directorate which is really the managing authoritv, bu: is subject to the orders of the Chancellor while its members are appointed directlv b\ '.he Emperor. Third, and last, comes" thl shareholders, who are privileged to elect i committee from their own numbers, but m - the duty of the committee is confined ti Criticism and consultation, it has no, nnfhori cativc influence in policy or management. Tin budget statements of the Empire and (if'lhi Prussian State reveal big gaps, and it is ver likely that in a few weeks the Federal Govern' ment will seek to borrow .£15,000,000, and th Prussian Government a similar amount, lie sides these sums, and part of the ,£20,000,00 authorised for the Polish expropriation, am settlement operations, inspired newspapers ar foreshadowing ,£5,000,000 or ,£0,000,000 in ad dition to cover a general increase of salarie for Government officials,. teachers, and clergy men, rendered necessary through the high cos . of the necessaries of iife. It is certain, tor that the municipalities will call for unustiall heavy amounts of capital, the. aggregate o such loans now awaiting .a favourable oppoi tunity being not less' than .£35,000,000." PREVENTION OF CORRUPTION. Some time ago legislation was promised o the lilies of the English Prevention of Co" ruption Act, but nothing was done in th; direction during the last session. The En; lish Act appears to have, been productive i much good to traders in the United Kirigdon At first it was thought that this Act woul become a dead letter, but it was not so. ,Tui before Cl'iistnuis many private confprcnci -in the various trades were held among lea< ing houses, aud agreements entered into" I respect the Act to the very letter. In tl caso of some of the largest employers in tl City of London, travellers and outdoor r presantatives of all kinds were notified th: in future no cheques would be drawil on a count of Christinas presents, and any gifts < presents given by travellers or others won! not be sanctioned by the firm; Furthermor manufacturers, from whom retailers dnu their supplies, were requested not to ma] presents or gifts to employees without- tl

Written consent' of 1 employers. - This is as_ it should be,■and it ought to be adopted in New .Zealand. i . ; . LIVE ST'OCK MAEKETS : .,. ■ Messrs; Dalgety and Company, Ltd., report : as follows 011 their Pabnerston sale yesterday: —We had a yooci : .j-ardiiijy of cattle, and a - small entry of sheep. Woolly lambs niado Bs.; 18-months heifers, . 325. (id., 3(is. 6d.; 2-year steers, £3 Os. Gd. 2-y.ear heifers, -lis.; 3-year . heifers, 475. Gd.; empty cows, 285.; mixed yearlings, small, 17s. Cd. '; 18-months 4'Js.; ' 21-year shorthorn steers, extra good, Is. Tlfe; JJew;' Zealand . 'Loan aiid Mercantile .Agency' Co., Ltd., report, as. follows :-r-At Palmerston North on Thursday we'luul a good entry of cattle, and-a fair .yarding '"of sheep. TpiicViT for.both! .sheep.',and cattle were Iqw, , and," 'although: nearly';all lines were quitted, ' jaidtiiiij? .was '/ liimbs, -Is, lo 4s. Oil.; stove ewes, Bs. Cattle—Weriiiers (small),,-.-!!si. Cd.; store !cqws, 335./.to.^2;'fonviird cows, X 2 "Bs. to £2 ids.';': fat...cows,' £i 'is.; .springing heifers, £2 , lCs. t tp 155.; cows' and calf, j£2 -Is.; 2-year steers,'2s. ; £S-yoar Polled Angus steers, £1 7s. Cd:; bulls, i' 3 12s. Cd. stocklliarket. •• ■ . ■ CiiUiSrcHuncir, January 22. At" the Addiiigtoii' live stock market to-day there were fairly lsirgci' entries of stock, and the attendance was above the average. Prime beef sold well, but tho bulk was inferior and difficult ! to dispose of. ' Prime fat lambs wero « Fat' wethers <sold at late rates. Fat fiwes' showed an .improvement, imd there was a-.decided ; .improvement- in store sheep. Pigs sold well.' There was a rather better demand -for store cattle. The number of store sheep on offer was not so large as last wtck, and a clearance was effected at an advance-in lambs of fully Is. Gd. !. to 3s. a head on the previous week. The yardj;ing' »of ■ fat lambs ;*wns' larger even than' last 'week,'and 1 thero was a considerable improvement in the quality, tljero being a large pro? portion of prime lots and fower of what are only stores. Export, buyers were operating; and prices wc.vo iirni for nil lots suitable for freezing, atd,'in.sympathy with the store market, the unfinished; lambs. sold . better: Tho range.of: prices was: —Tegs, 15s. 3d. to 17s. Id.; best- freezers, 13s. to 155.; lighter, lis. to 12a. Gd,;,rnpo lambs,. Bs. to lis; .Bd. There was a moderate entry of fat sheep, which.was not beyond the requirement* of the local butchers." Wethers sold at liito rates, •and ewes showed an advance, prime ewes showing the most improvement. Prime wethers, 17s. Gd.; lighter, 15s. to 175.; prime ewes, 14s. Gd. to lGs. Gd.; extra heavy and young, 17s. to 18s. 6(1.; medium, 12s. fid. to Ms.; aged, 10s. to' 12s. ~ ' Tho yarding of fat cnttlo totalled 339 head. Few were prime, the bulk being pporly finished steers and cows. For prime quijjjty there'was' a good demand, but tho other cattle were very dull of sale. Steers brought >C 6 15s. to .£ls 55.; heifers, .£4 15s, to .EG 15s.;''cows, .£4 10s. to £1 7s.' Gd.—equal to 21s. to: 235. fid. for prime, steers, riicdiuni 18s. to 20s'., cow and inferior 16s. to lis. Gd. per 1001b. ■ Vealers sold at 45.-Gd. to -£2 10s. ' The. demand for store cattle was better than at recent "s:iles, and. prices showed a slight improvement. Fifteen to eighteen-month-old sorts made 28s. to 365.; two-year-old'steers, £'2 10s.; two-year-old heifers, .62 25.;: 'three-year-old steers, to .64 lis.; three-year-old lieifors, .£3 55.; ■dry cows, from 20s. to Jft : An average entry of dairy cows sold at prices ranging, from .£3 10s. to M 15s. ' A "small entry of pigs met with a good sale at-improved rates. Choppers, £i 10s. to ,£4 2s. Gd.; baeoners, 455. to G2s. (equal'to od. per lb.); porkers, 325. to 435. (equal to Sd, to 5Jd. per lb.)V; large stores, 225. to 3fls.; slips, 15s. to 205.; weaners, lis.- to 14s. . DUNEDIN WOOL SALES. (BY IELGGRAriI—rtIESS ASSOCIATION.) : '■ Btoedix, -January 23. - The'.-'second of-tho'-'four wool sales which takes place -locally every season was held in the Agricultural Buildings'to-day. Seven sell- " ing houses came forward with'catalogues comprising 17,030 bales. At tho. corresponding sale last'ycar the offerings totalled 1G,410 bales. It was expected that- prices would show no rise, and-possibly a slight decrease on those ruling at tho sale held on December 19, and, generally speaking, sellors' valuations wcl-c based on the I'ates then obtained. To-day's -sale, however, made it evident that buyers' limits have not been reduced, on account of the decline in London, • and- the spirited bidding for good wools showed that buyers were keen to obtain lots rf this description. Local mills took tho bulk of the fine Wools, while representatives of Bradford houses took most of the coarser 1 wools of. bright quality. Inferior wools of a 1 wasty and earthy description are no better. In .fact", in some cases they are a shade lower, '. there being practically very little competition for them. On the other hand, bright lustrous J wools, both fine and coai-se, show a rise of from Id. to Jd. per lb., and in a few cases even up | to Id. per lb. Coarse matted wools, if light, in ! condition, are fully Jd. per lb. higher, while | picces also show a rise of Jd. to 3d. per lb. '

LONDON MEAT MARKET. January 2.1. The Colonial Consignment mid Distributing Company has received, the following London cable message'" The' frozen meal; market continues very weak. There is no improvement in prices." . BARLEY". Bi.exiieim, January 22. The barley market is not yet fully opened. Buyers are offering 55.,. but farmers are firm for ss. Gd. and over. BBITISII. MARKETS. 01 TEItEGHM'II —ntES3 ASSOCIATION—COPTRIUItT. London, January 22. At the tallow auctions 1197 casks offered and 111 sold at Gil. dccline. Copper—On spot, iIE 17s. (id.; three months, JBG3 10s. Tin—Oil spot, XI2I 155.; tlircc mouths, Xl2!i 15s, Lead, £11 10s. .» The American visible supply of wheat is 'GG,525,000 . .

; — WELLINGTON SHANE LIST. COMPANY • Ckp.taV S gj ft '. ' „ " »•« i Pald ' Cp - Sri Sh« e . Buror. - Wller. s °, a .. Investor. BASKS. • £ -i'" ■ X ' ' f! 0 15 0 112 fi" i' 9 Kew Zealand . - S.OCO.OOl 581,675 . , 3% 3i ~ ' :1 ° ' ' ? J » ; r ls'?n ' H ' National - - 375,000 ..335,318 ; » ■ '15-. 12;• :J 6 0' I 5.7- 0. 6(? 0 ( 1J 8 INSURANCE.- -■ ■ .. , „ 1 • 1 c t V « National - - • ICO.OOO 249,339 }. nnltd. IS J. 7 ° } 79 ] '.J | 9 ' New Zealand .. - . ECO.OOO ' 336,785. S~ 8 ' ' 10 ' " '1 »' ' c 41 ® 500 Eonth British - ICO.OOO , 6J2.490 _.unUd, ; 30': '•. #-.W J.. J : ' ■ Standard _ - . - 75,000 82,183 2 unltd, .10 135 1 * 8 EquitableBuilding . 50,000' ftW0~. "'-.si :.v.£.:; 301' •' 10 M. .M 5 0 • 10 419 ' Metropolitan Building 21.000 10 nil - 7 _,, n WellingtonInvert. - 60,000 3,933 • i 4 >« ,'„; 1nn 'A®S.! .®i?.S' - * ®-® WergtonTrust&Loan 101,250 44,334 , B.'' 5 8 V i 1 ® 2 71 6 l-Z J 9 National Mortgago - 500,000. 112,250 8' -10 ? S 2' 1 t a a ?ob ' !',? J N.Z. and River Plate - 300,000 252,000 1 nil. .7 ' 1 .- 9S .■}' i * •; .• itt # Loan and Mercantile'- 135.22J '315,133 '4 8J' . 6 . ..' '?-? 6 • ' GAS. . : ' Auckland - . . 180,370 £0,553 8 nil 38 „ , Christohorch ... . 352,000 55,087. . '6.,'nil ', : 30' : n Sit- c in ii Feilding - . . . 30,805 103 1. nil - - — - ° 16 ° ' ® , 017 0. Gisbomo - . . 17,100 9,230 . 1 nil 12i * 14 '" • • •„ . Hawora . 8,250 . 745 5 i 10 ' . New Plymouth - . 38,000 ' 3,153-' . 6 .nil--. .10 7.17.0 Kapier ..... \ ... 30 nil ., 15, . « ' „ - - . . 49,057 - SWT .. • 16 .5,' 15:.:, ... .. »» ® ... } 1 -.jl., . 15/ - • 3 ® Palmerston North ' ! £7,000 11,0»2 4i } 10 * * • „ „ ,1.1 i f * 2 Wellington - - ™ 670 1 67983 30 nil 30 0 . 19 2 0 " 2 6 6 6 0 . .. . • J-Miu; , 5 ,5 jo 9 38 6 : ' MEAT. -. ■ ■- Canterbury- • 183,727 , E0.074. , 7j 2j . 8 . . .... „ , ... . Christchurch .. ' • 165,920 --64,337 30 • mi. . 8 - : 30 31 0 -1012 S 30 30 0 . 713 4 Dear - . "• jK.ooo} . ««.««• ..".J $»«, ' ;U4' ;.«.•' 3 10 0 2 10 0-. 5 0 0 Wellington lieat*Eip ) ' 5 nil. ; ' 8 ' ' ' „ . I " ? _ „ ,. , E . 105 76C r ' ' 63 76T '4 1 8 5-- 0 0 :'5 2 6 . .6, 2 ,u 6 5 6 ;; ;; ) ■ a •» • 8 350 35a 3-5,3 ni TPang'anui ' 45,850 31,404 5 nil. 8 ' "'•••' ' TRikNSPOBT -. • W. &M. Railway .- 170,000 . 321,453, -1 4, ,. - ,7» 8.3>0, 3 4 3.3 6 8 3 0 KJI. Shipping - • 473,810- 313,751' 8' nil.- 5; , 6>T ; 6' , ' ' DnionSteam - - 800,000 473,593 -3 nil. ' 7i" "I'll 0 112 0 Wgtn. 6team Ferry - 46,250 : 65 '. 1 ..niL . 6 .- 018 0 . ; ■, . .. Weetport -. • 560,000' 117,215 5l li ,35 7 16 0 7 16 ' 0 614 7 lanpiri- - . -82,500, 5,333 - .1 ■ nU. . . 7J - : 0 39 6 " 1. • 3 . WOOIiIiBN. ' 1 ' . Eaiapoi- - - - 300,003 ,J2,854 6 nil. 6 " '■ MoEgiel - 83,457 . 17,'212 Si. . li 4. J 0.0 ■Wellington - - - . fO.OOO i 1 6 S10 0 ,-S 6 0- T 6 « MISCELLANEOUS. . .. ... DonafihyRopo - - 47,000 — .' . 5". /nil •„ ™ ::518 0 - 6 OH. Leyland& O'Brien - 35,005 ? 37,761 "■ 1 ml ; 35 • -- !S 5 6 6 6 0 ManricerilleLima . 7,000 £03 1 ml , 8 X.Z.Candle- • 10,OX) - ' 30 nil./.-T- • > K.Z.Druss - . -.200,000 '2 nil - 7/ ' .230-fl . ! Hi 0 ..[2 11 0.. 5 9 9 M.Z. Paper Mills - 94,755 3 J77 3 nil 7 130 133 '1 3. 3 605 N.Z.Cemont- • - 40,COO , 2,741 3 nil - :. .. -, Manning & Co. - ;- 06.C00 * 37,670 ' 4 . 1 1 10 1 3'1T 6 ' ' ■Ward&Co. - - - 80,000 SO,655 4 1 30 . 5 0 0 8 0 0 Wgtn. Opera Honsa - 3B.680 3.7C5 E nil 8 "> 0.' 0 5 34 0 Wgtn Fresh Food" 28,261 : 1 'nil — Whitcombo & Tombs- 46.250 £0453 6 ml 30 4 30 0 Sharland, Limited 48,676 9,311 1 nil 7j 018 6' 018 • 3 -8 i 4