FINANCE AND COMMERCE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 225, 16 June 1908, Page 10

FINANCE AND COMMERCE.

•WELLINGTON SHARE LIGT."

,), ; THE SHAKE MARKET. v / A little business was' done in' investment shares'yesterday. There was a snlo. of Wcl•lingtori Deposit and' Mortgage shares at 95., and D.I.C. preference at £1 Is.' IOJd.; ,!'n ,'t.he whole, buying orders were pr.ineivhat scanty, giving to tho market an appearanco of dullness. National .Hank shares were in demand, at <£5 45., sellers • wanting £5 !ir>. 3d. Now Zealand and River Plate, sellers £i 125.; : Wellington Deposit, buyers Bs. yd., se'lers 9s. 3d.; Christchurch Gas, sellers £10 55.; i-eild- ; ing Gas, sellers 20s.', 3d., Souta British,"'sell- - ers £2 lGs.; Christchurch Meat, iilO ss. j Mana,watu Rails, buyer's :£2 ~7sJ 6d., sellers £2 95.; Union Steam, buyers S4s. 61. j Westport Coal, .. ; sellers £6 18s. 6d.; .D.I.C. preference, buyers 21s. 9d.-j Layland-O'Brien! Timboi', 'sellers 435. . Sharland's ordinary and preference, 20s. ' . - THE MINING MARKET. A sale, of Talismans at 475. 3d. was all, the business, reported iii 'this, section yesterday. ... The annual meeting of the Talisman Company : will be held in London .td-day, when it is expected that two -directors nominated by the' , Wellington' Committee will be elected. It 1 ' is " to bo noted that the moment Talismans ex : hibit any signs of weakness buyers aro &t. once available to snap-up .the low ;priced ~share's"* Tho (potations yesterday -; vcl - e as under:— • Buyers. Sellers. Sales. • ' .£ s. d. ,£ s. d. £s. d. Talisman ».< v~'2 G G 2- 7' 3 2 7 3 Waihi -i 9 3.0 9 4 0 — N.Z. Crown — ». 0 6 6 0 6 0 — . Big River — ~ 1 10- — , Tangiaro ~ ... 0 1.9 02 0 — 'l'angiaro shares liave been very nicely boomed, but whether the prospects warrant' the, prico of Is.' 3d. is a matter of pure speculation. • ~ . THE HONEY MARKET.'' "': - • The unfortunate underwriters .of the West .'Australian-3i per cent., loan for .-£1,000,000, which was issued last week, have been compelled to take up 93 -per cent, of the' issue, and, in view of what we said on Friday last, the'results are not surprising.'. Iny addition to this, we have the fact/that Imperial Con- ; sols closed on Saturday at .£B7 7s. 6d., or 7s. 6d. below the quotation of the previous* day. These l two items disclose the. very peculiar, monetary conditions that prevail in London. .On the one hand., we -have . loan money and discounts exceptionally easy;' the Bank Tate is at 2J per cent, while the bill brokers of Lombard Street are doing three months' bills as low as 1J per- cent., fed yet giltedged securities are depressed, Imperial ConBole, being ,at. £87 -75., 6d., must-yield-about 3 per cent. ,or a little more, and tho West Australian loan, under tho, favourable conditions of issue, must give a return of about' 8} or, a little moro per cent.,' nnd yet this loan was not a success., London has -been flooded with now issues ever sinco. February,, and many of the loans'and capital applica-. tions were "of a very attractive nature. The market, however, seems unwilling to take upanything under i 'per cent. The, failure of , tho West -Australian loan will: make things difficult for the borrowing States of Austral lasia.' The New Zealand Government must : raise further sums—a million for public works is a foregone matter, and tlicro aro the other Bums under Acts of Parliaments, which must be provided. To endeavour to 'borrow in Australasia would be bad from, two .- points of view. A -higher rata than 4 r per/cent.' will have to be paid, and if tho money is obtained it will have n bad effect, for it will be robbing the commercial classes of the credits which they need for carrying on the trade, and commerce of • the; country.- ■ ■.- There' are no changes in the monetary conditions locally, and perhaps no'further increase in 'rates mil bo made iso long as, the Government arid the municipalities keep off : the. market. RANK. OF NEW..' ZEALAND., V '. Tho balance-sheet of the Bank of New Zealand for, the year , ended March 31, 1908, was circulated/yesterday. ■; The gross profits, after providing for expenses of management, all bad nnd doubtful debts, and after making provision for the annual donation to the provident fundand bonus to staff amount to £309,923, as com- ! pared with .£350,881 in the previous year. Tho net : profit, after deducting ' interest (£40,000) 'on guaranteed stock, and £20.0 i written off bank premises and furniture, totals £309,923, as against £294,881. With the amount brought forward, the sum available for distribution is £3-11,598, and this is allocated as under: — Dividend on preference shares £37,500 Dividend ,on ordinary shares 50,000 Added to-reserve fund ... 200,000 Carried forward ... ... ... 54,098 £341,598 The dividend on the preference shares is equal to per cent., and on the ordinary shares to 10 per cent. The, substantial addition to the reserve' frind is commendable, and, while some shareholders who bought shares in-the hope of obtaining a higher dividend may lie a little disappointed, the directors are to be congratulated-in .adhering to a sound banking policy. Th?, reserve fund i, is now £1-50,000. or, with the amount carried over, a little more than half a million sterling, or just half the amount it should bo. A glance at the assets and liabilities shows that deposits, which amount , to £12,771,413, are. £137,746 less than in tlief previous year; note circulation is about £50,000 less. London investments . -have been reduced from £5,201,757 to £3,749,073, the bank evidently finding it more profitable to invest tho money in Australasia. Investments in Colonial Government and muncipal securities total £1,123,295, or nearly £100,OOi more than in the previous year. Discounts have declined from £2,389,968 to £1,520,722, while tho advances have increased from £6,423,033 to £8,350,010. Coin and cash bal> anccs total £2,4!:"),993. against' £2,1 CO,COS, and 'bullion"oil hand and in transit ££0,923, against £110.610.

. THE •WHEAT MARKETS. The wheat growers of Now Zealand ivho liavo been holding for extreme prices, are likoly to continue . holding, their, grain, are likely to reason that'extreme-value cannot ho obtained. Australia'lias been able to sell flour in New Zealand, notwithstanding the transportation charges and the heavy duty, and in the London market there has been a drop ill prices, :with' a'tendency for values to go lower. Europe is within four or five weeks of harvest, and from latest accounts a big yield is expected, especially in America. If the United States seoure anything like the estimated harvest, wheat must drop to 3s. 6d. to 3s. 9d. a bushel in London, because the Americans will force sales to meet their, financial necessities. Many of> the Wellington' 1 bankers are operating with Australian'* flour, arid it is to this, and not •entirely to the'coupon system, that is due tho fact that no advance has taken place' in tho price of bread. In passing, it may bo mentioried that ; not all tho bakers in the city aro .pledged to the coupon-system. Many aro trading on the old . lines of weekly-and monthly credits to approved customers, and.these bakers ■'are capturing'many , now customers. . It: is not convenient-for everyone to.comply with tho demands of the bakers; some cannot get delivery at the time that suits them, and othors object to the. principle, of. advancing money to tho bakei'.Vaii'-a 'a'-per'cent.* 1 rate, without security or guarantee. It is not unlikely that this subject will crop up during the coming session of Parliament, when it is possible also that something may bo done 1 to terminate the system of trading which obtains by tho distribution of gifts, cash prizes," eto.

' ST. PAUL-GLADIATOR COLLISION. The result of tho inquiry into tho St. PaulGladiator collision, so far as tho Admiralty is- concerned, is the dismissal of the commander from his ship.. The cruiser, being in Admiralty - commission" at the time of the disaster, was uninsured, but the St. Paul, one of tho. most, important of the steamers of the International Mercantile Marine Company, otherwise the. Morgan Combine, and valuea at £270,000, was insured under twelve months' '.policies'; on -Special conditions. The terms of this insurance' specially stipulate that underwriters are exonerated from liability for loss or damage unless the same amounts to £100,000 from any one accident. For several years it has " been' the' policy 'of tho -Morgan combine to insure their largest steamers -under similar conditions, and, owing to tho immunity from loss, the premium lias been reduced from time ,to time," so that it is now considered to bo very favourable to the owners. So far as it can bo ascertained, -there is no case recorded at Lloydfs..whereby.a,modern protected cruiser has been, totally wrecked by .a merchantman. There have been.several instances of collisions between. warships and. mercantile vessels, in which the-latter hayo suffered the worst, the most memorable case during recent years being that'of tho'disaster to tho British steamer Ruperra, which was'sunk in July, 1903, after collision....with, H.M.S., Mnlampiis whilst tho merchantman was 'proceeding from Barry \ Port! Said. , A NEW. SILK. Specimens of a now "silk" were recontly forwarded fro.m Uganda, and have been examined in tho Scientific and Technical Department of tho Jmperial Institute. Tho silkworm (Anaphe sp.) feeds principally on tho leaves of species of Ficus," but the cocoons aro found in almost, all the forest trees. Tho caterpillars spin a large nest, inside which they form their cocoons in considerable numbers. These nests are composed entirely, of "silk"; the outer layers are of somewhat loose texture, whilst the-inner, part is firm and paper-like, but, on dogumming,-. each portion yields tho same silky material. It seems probable that tho whole of this product may be capable of utilisation as " wasto" silk. On examining tho cocoons it has 'been found possible to reel a small quantity ■of silk-from - selected specimens, but usually 'they'aro too loose to allow the reeling to bo satisfactorily, carried out. Technical trials have shown that the whole of the silk cau bo spun into lustrous yarns which can be dyed without difficulty. Similar cocoons have been received froii) Southern Nigeria, Northern Nigeria, and Nyassaland: In Southern Nigeria the silk is used by the Natives in conjunction with cotton for making the so-called, "soyan" cloths. There appear to. be. several varieties of these silkworms, and they probably occur-in many parts of Africa. . ' HIGH COMMISSIONER'S REPORT.

The-Department of Industries and Commerce has received the following cable from the High Commissioner, dated London, June 13, 1908:— The mutton, market,is dull. Trade for all classes has been vcryislow, and prices are barely maintained. .Canterbury mutton is quoted at 4Jd„ and North Island at 3Jd. per lb. The lamb inarkot is very 'firm, and there is a Rood demand for all brands. Prosneots nro favourable for obtaining high prices during this season. Canterbury lamb is quoted at 5J(1.. and other, than; Canterbury at s}u. per lb. There is a bettor demand for beef, owing to the reported scarcity in America, but there is no change in prices to report. The butter market is firm, and there is a good demand. Stock of New Zealand butter is exhausted. Danish is quoted at 1125.; Australian, 101s.; and Siberian, 102s. per cwt. The.chqese. market is quiet, but steady, and there is a fair demand for better grades. White makes, of which tlicro is a small supply, are quoted at G2s.; a.nd coloured, which is in largo supply, at 575.' per cwt. • The homp markot is quiet, with a small business doing, 'i.lie followingaro the enrrjutquotations:— Good fair grade, on spot, J!2G 10s.; fair grade,'on spot, .£24 10s.; fair current Mnnila, on spot, ,-C2'l 10s. July to September shipments: Good (air grade. .jK7;Jnir grade, J225; fair current Manila, v£2s per.'ton. The wool market is'quiet, but steady. Current quotations for. Bradford tops aro as follow 9Jd.j 40's Ion: crons-

brods, lftjd.; 44's medium crossbrcds, ll}d.j BO's half-breds, Is. !!](!.: sG's quarter-breds, is. GJd.; 00's merinos, Is. !)d. Kauri gum is rjno(o«I as follows:—Ordinary to fail' three-quarter scraped. IGOs.; fair lialf scraped, 1055.; brown lair half to throe-quarter scraped, 355.; brown pickings, common to good, 505.; bush fail - to good palo mid amber, scraped, 1255. Stock held in London amounts to 565 tons, and there is a fair demand for better grades. The hop market is very dull. STOCK SALES. . Abraham and Williams, Limited, report holding their usual fortnightly salo at Mangaweka on Saturday last, when there was a good yarding of sheep, which met with a much bettor demand than has prevailed for some tinje. Nearly everything was sold either under the hariimcr or immediately afterwards. Prices: Ewe lambs, good, 10s.; wether lambs, very good, Bs. Gd. to 9s. 3d.; 2-tooth wethers, 10s. Gd.; forward wethers, 12s. 10d.; f.m. ewes in lamb, 7s. to Ss.; fat cows, .£4 10s.; cow, .£5; mixed weaners, 17s. Gd.; 3!-year / steers, £i. I STOCK EXCHANGE. Dot Trr.EdEAi'H.—press absociatioiu Duncdin, June 15. Stock Exchange quotations:—Dredging stock: Alexandra Eureka, buyers 35., sellers 4s. 6d.; Chicago, buyers 55.; Electric, sellers 10s.; Golden Bed, buyers 95., sellers 10s. Gd.; Juira, sellers £1. Koputni, sellers £2 as. Gd.; Lady Boxburgh (paid), buyers 9s. Gd.; Maiwhorikia, sellers .£1 25.; Molyneux Kohinoor (contrib.), buyers Is. 3d., sellers 2s. 3d.; Mystery Flat, buyers .El 19s. Gd., sellers £2 35.; New Trafalgar, buyers 155.; Notown 'Crook, buyers Bs. Gd.; Pactolus. sellers 17s. Gd.; Eise and Shine, buyers .£1 11s.; Rising Snn, buyers .£1 13s. Mining stocks: Big River, bnvers ,£1 Is.; Talisman Consolidated, sellers £2 75.; Waihi, sellers ;£9 65.; Ngatiawa, bnyers lid. Investment stocks: National Insurance, buvers ,£1 6s. 3d.; Westport Coal Company, sellers ,£G 195.; Westport-Stockton, sellers 3d. (premium); Commercial Property Company (10s.), sellers 35.; D.I.C. (ord.), buyers 55.; New Zealand Paper Mills, bnyers .El Is. Gd., sellers .£1 25.; New Zealand Portland Cement, buyers dfil 45.; Oamaru Woollen Factory Company, sellers £1 7s. IMPERIAL CONSOLS. DECLINE 7s fid. BY TELEGRAPH —PEESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRICII? _ ■ , , London, .Tunc- H. Consols closed yesterday (Saturday) at ,£S7 7s. Gd., a fall of 7s. 6d. on the previous day's quotation. ■ , • . WEST AUSTRALIAN LOAN. ■ UNDERWRITERS TAKE 93 PER CENT. CT ?£LEQRAPH—FUfcSS ASSOCIATION —COPTItIGHt ' London, Juno 14. . The underwriters have taken up 93 per cent, of tho new 3J per cent. West Australian loan of one million. THE METAL MARKETS. SY TELEGRAPH——PRESS ASSOCIATION —COPTRIGin London, June 14. Copper, on the spot, ,£53 7s. Gd. por ton; three months, i£5S 17s. Gd. 'Tin.—Spot, .£l2B 15s. per ton; three months, JEI29 ss. Lead, £12 355. Pr:- ton. Galvanised iron, first brands, .£l4 7s. 6d. per ton; second brands, <£14 2s. Gd.; iron bars, £7; train rails, £5 ss. CEMENT PRICES. B! TELEGRAPH —PBIiSS ASSOCIATION—'COPYRIGHT. London, Juno 14. Cement, first brand, is quoted at ss. 9d., and second brand at ss. 2d. COLONIAL AND OTHER PRODUCE. vr TEI.EC2APH—rXIESa ASSOCIATION— COFTRIOirt London, June 14. Linseed oil, £25 15s. Homp.—Steady, at ss. advance.' An Australian wheat cargo has been sold at 355. 4Jd. per quarto-.. Cheese—New Zealand, whito, 625. to GSs. por !cwt.; coloured, 565. to -58s. ' Sheep—Canterbury, light, 4}d. per lb.; medium, 4d.; heavy, 3 7-lGd.; other sorts, unchanged. . •'. Lambs.—Canterbury light and modiiwi, unchanged; heavy, 5 9-16 d.; North Island, 5. 3-16 d. i Beef.—Fores, 2Jd.; hinds, 3Jd. • River Plate sheep unchanged. Beef—Fores, 2 13-lGd.; hinds, 8 9-lGd. The Customs rovenue collected at Wellington yesterday amounted to ,£7BG 14s. 3d.

Y • ■ .■ ayaa g la?a,sl ;yy;,y ■' ; : ■■.- .■. : , - p : .;mi«. .&* " - .banks. £ - £ £ £ j f ,, a, a . | ,. j, t ,. a, JTow Zoaland ... ...■'•... ... 2,000,000 81.C75 jt sj 10 8180 910 #00 814 1 liational ... ... . • ... .„ 375,000 335,318 sj - 15 13 6,40-603 [iO 637 '.■■■■ ' " INSURANCE. ,/' ■' , X Kattegat- ... .., 100.000 240,530 X nulla, 15 "1 6 0 "1 6 0 v;-- • Hew Zealand ... ... ... ... 300,000 JOG,074 J 8 10 3 16 0 3 16 6 3 15 6 6 « 0 ••• Booth : British ... -.100.000 .«4,SM • • »• ik - 10 • -91« 0 btODOKd .... . 16,000 92,986 Bi. . 10 1 .1 0 ,1 3 3 v FINANCIAL. . . Equitable Building ;'.. ... "60,030 2?.000'< •• j. -n-< 10 - 10 2 0 10 0 0 Metropolitan Building ... ... £0.542 5.6SS ' in nil 7 / , ' Wellington, Invest. ... ... ... 60,COO 3,033 - - I -4 6 OH 0 Oil 0 6 4 4 ,, Wellington Trust and Loan ... 101,250 41,334 5 5 g TOO 7 11 0 706 670 - National Mortgage ... .200,000. 127,746 ,2 8 ;. 10 8 18.0 300 300 6 13 4 K.Z: and Kivor Plate .... ... 300,000252,000. 1 ...nil-.-' 7- 1-11*6 112 0 111 G 4 8 11 • tten and Mercantile ... ... . 135,itu '315,133 - " \ "Ej • -5 ■ - • » * 0 16 0 i 6 11 G 8 CAS. ' , . ; 'Auckland ... ... ... ... 103,370 E5.463 5 nil jg . - Cliriatchnrch ... >... ..." ...' IIM.KO; -70,9185 , " nil 10' : 91718-'10 6 0 10 0 0 600 ■ ■■. Feilding - . - 12/ur 103 1 " B u ... s 0 '6 1 0 3 010 6 Gisborne ... .......I -17.300 10,565. .. j - nil, la? ' '810 0 810 0 510 0 . Ilawsra. ... 8.JJ0 • 6J4 5 .i 10 How Plymouth ... 18,000 3,159 5 nil 10 ' " '•. fcapior - - ) 10 . nil 15 ~ - | 40,057 23,164" 5 "6 15 3 2 6 . Palmerston North 27.000 -.11,092 <1 .;J. 10 • V/olltugton - ~ - - 1 104570 'n.758 10 nil 10 13 7 (1 10 10 0 10 7 6 B 3 3 - ~. - .~ / , . . .5 . 6 . 10 1010 0 . -iC \ .-■■ MEAT. ■■ . ' :< ' ■ Canterbury w • •_ 163,727 . 32,686 7j 2} 8 8 0 0 Christchorch ... „. _ 165,020 ' 77,642 10 . nil. ,'8 10 2 6 10 6 B 10 T 0 714 7 -flear ... .. „ ... I mom E62G1- 1 nil 125 2 0 0 210 0 1 9 0 6 9 0 ... ... _ _ f i . .. 6 12J 815 0 10 0 0 Wellington lteat Export „ ) 5 nil 8 612 6 : • „ „ ... „ f 105,766 63,767 41 8 {It tit I f I ■ „ ... ) . 26 92 8 3 5 0 3 5 0. 6 9 3 .Waneannl ... ... 45,650 ,10.313 .5 nil . 8 TRANSPORT.'"' 1 " " W. and'U. Kailway ... 170.001 121,453 1 /' 7 3 7 6 \2 0 0 2 0 0 2 17 2 K.'Z. Wiipi-ing: ... - ..: 473.M0 • 110,760 •$ nil 5 6 IS 6 10 3 10 Unio.: b.-.-am • 600,1)00 3tl,s)17 • .1 nil 7J in D 115 0 . Wtiu. titeam Ferry ... ... ; 46,260 ■ 65 1 cil p 1 ■ : • COAL. ' _ '• Y - . STestport ... ... ... ... ... SSMM 117,215 3J U 12| 6 13 6 0 18\« 6 6 4 - taupiri ... '... -... t-Ji.Ouu MM.. 1. nil Jj 1 0 0 0 10 6 7 14 0 Y;-:' -WOOLLEN. ■ .V, Y. ■ •" Kaiapol '... ... '... ... ... 100,000..- 32,854, 6 nil 63 Kosgiel 63.457 ' ' 17,212 ' $J lj -4 • 31 0 4 IS 0 . UrolUaston /■ ... — ... - WS5 24,363- i 1 G 370 300 370 733 : MISCELLANEOUS. ;"'v/ , ' . ' t Eonaghy Kop« ... ' ,J iSJXO 181 , 1 nil 6 14 0 ' I.ejlaud and O'Brien ... ... 35,wO 37,761' 1 ■ nil" 15 2 3 0 Jiaiu-iceriUo Lime ... ... ... 7,U10 f05 1 nil .8 * l\.Z. C&ndlo ... ... 10,000 676 10 nil 8 ' • S.Z. Dross - 2CO.CO). 36,730 . 2 nil 7 2 10 0 8110 2110 680 K.Z.';Paper Hflla , M . .. 94,775. 1,682 1 nil 7110123130 N.Z. Cement ... ... ■ 40,CM 1 - '2,048 1 nil ' .'.. 1 4" 3' : Mxnnins and Co. ... . ... 06,000 37,670 4 1 10 3 14 0 ' Ward and Co ... ... . BOjtUO. 30,655 i .4 :. ,1 10 416 0 6 0 0 4 15 0 8 8 5 1 . Wetn. Opera llouao ... ... >... 18,600 1,705 S nil 12} [ ■ Wgtn. Fraah t'-jod ... 28.2C1 ... 1 nil ... Whitcombi! and Tombs ... ... ' 46,-.-iO EO.I.jG 5 nil. 19 4 8 0 _, Bharland, Ltd. ... ... ... ... 1 it,616 0,311 1 nil' 7} 010 0 1 0 0 019 6 714- 0