THE WORLD'S WHEAT

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 522, 1 June 1909, Page 7

THE WORLD'S WHEAT

. A REAL SHORTAGE, . ,aENEROBITY OF PATTBNr . . PROMSIONALxSPEOULA'fOItS BiT, (bl tStsd'uipH—P&BSß (Roc. May 31, 11.5 p.m.) tow York, M&y aii Mr. Paitett, \tl\oat speculator—who was recently repotted 66 settling on genomic terms tvlth tlioso who wow short of May whoa t—was in a position 6o strong that ha coilid havedemanded fire dollars & bushel, Ho BMoptod 134 cents, and cleared £400,000 sterling profit personally, whilo his assoofc ates wado a profit of £300,000. Mr. Patten gavo his employees a bonus of 10 por cent, oil their salaries for the year. The New York correspondent of "Xlia Timts" reports that most of the loeera ato professional speculators. In tho opinion of ra&hy, Mr. Patten's contention that there is less wheat in the world than is generally believed has boon proved tc bo correct.

SHORTAGE CONPIfiMEO. Confirmation of the above-expressed, view ii provided by the editor of the "Matk L&Utt EX» prees;" who wrote on April 17:— - . • Apart from any questions of manipulation of the American market by a single operator or a olique, with tho object of driving prices to a factitious level, it cannot be dented that the tendency has boon for many years in this country for wheat and flour, and flonsequently bread, to get dearer. No doubt the manipulations la America havo done a great deal to oxcito the wheat lilafkets of the world; but the whole cause of the recent advanoes in this oountry is not to be found in tho manipulations in the Pit at Chicago, but rather in the shortage of supplies and the absence of stocks in this country. It is reckoned by tta beat Authorities th&t tX the present time the visible supply, ia round figures, is three million quarters less than it was twelvo mouths ago, and it is to this fact that tho recent increase in price must bo ascribed. It is mado up is this way-. Farmers' holdings, 1,000,000: quarters! merchants, 1,450,000; ; and on passage, 8.870,000.. Total, 6,050,000, as'against 9,350,000 at tho corresponding date last year. Against this shortage there is a surplus of nearly H million quarters in tho;tfnited States, but ovor there viduos Mfl so big that nono of the wheat is likely to oomo here until well over 40s. per quarter can be got for it on this side. • Feeding tho World. , The real question is that of the world's pro> duction-of wheat, for the failure of tho erop in any portion of tho globe has an immediate effect upon the markets in the big consuming centres, This is due to tho itioroaso-' in the number of the wheat-consuming peoples of the world. The population of those countries which subsist on bread has largely increased of late years, while, on tho other hand, there has 'been no inoreaso in tho production. Toko, for instance, the United States of America, wnioh fifteen to twenty years ago sent us 60 per csiit. of our foreign wheat. No# wo find that the demand in America has so enormously increased that, while tho quantity imported into this country is greater than ever ft was, tho proportion coming from tho United States has fallen) as low as 30 to 40 per cent, of our total imports. In faot, it is certain that at no very distant date, tho United States will require nil the wheat (jrewn in that country to feed Its own population, bo rapid is tho rate at which consumption is overtaking production,' Tho enormous areas of prairie land that yielded wheat which could bo put on tho British-market at 255. per quartet and leave a good profit to the produocd aro'becoming played oat, and Its bocomes essential that a system of farming in rotation analogous' to that in force in England must bo followed in ordor to maintain tho fertility of the soil. Thus tho cost of production is inoreaasd. - Of late years Argentina has developed iti agridaltnre to a wonderful extent, and corn comes in huge quantities from South America i but tho Argentine crops this season havo been a partial failure, with tho rostilt that stoika in this country became unusually depleted, and, ias a natural result, • tlisso depleted stocks brought increased prices. Increasing Cost of Wheal. To givo oonw idea of the gradual inoreaso in tho price of wheat, it is only necessary to glanoo at the following figures:— ,5. d.' 1800. CG 11 per quarter 1901 M o " " . 1902 /., 28 0 " ■ " 1003 2fi 0 " 1004 ;..... ... 28 i " 1005 29 0 " " 1906 28 i " " 1907 so /r " " ' ••1908" '. 32 0 " , : -Present time ............ 45 0, " • " Those figures aro not obtained from alarmist Sources, but are a true statement of the" real position of affairs,- beoanso they aro obtained by tho Government.. It ■ will bo seen that thfiM has been a gradual increase in tho prico of wheat for many years past, and it' seems certain the price of wheat and ilour will never again fall to the low levels experienced in 189J and 1895, when-tho averag® prioe was "2s. lOd. and 235. Id. per quarter.