COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1039, 31 January 1911, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

INVESTMENT SHAKES. A fair business in investment shares was done yesterday. Thero were sales -of Metropolitan Building at- £12, Chrictchurch Gas, £10 2s. 6d., and Wellington Vroollen ordinary at £3 16s. 6d. ,The buying aud selling quotations were a 6 under:— Buyers. £s.d. ;; ' £s. d. Equitable Building — 10 2 # 5 Feilding Gas 1 1 9:.- ~. Gisbornc • Ga3 2 19 0 ~ Weil. Gas (£10) 19 2 6 — Well. Gas (£C 15s'.)* :..;.:;;. 13*18 6 ' - Gear Meat (£1) 3 2 0 — Heat Export (£5) 6 7 6 Moat Export (52*. 6d.)3 . 0 0 3 2,0 Kaiapoi Woollen 5 2 0 — Well. Woollen (ord.) 3 16 0 3 17 6 Taupiri Coal 110 1 33.1.0. Preference — -13 3 LsyJand-O'Brien : — 17 6 Manning and Co. .• ;... ~ 1 410 0 lliramar, Ltd — 0 2 6 N.Z. (Jon; Dental 12 6. 13 6 Sharland's Preference ... 1 1 9 —. Taranaki Petroleum 011 I) - — Ward and Co. — '510 IMPERIAL COLD STORAGE. When tho Imperial Cold Storage was formed as a limited liability company there were very great expectations 'for tnen South-Africa was regarded as a meat-im-iPorting country of. some consequence. Tne •company has been losing money lor yea'rs and the shareholders :oi. the concern will :derivo little Batisiactioii from the report •foivthe year enciedMarch 31, 191U, wnich has only .just been: made public. The actual trading prolit of '£22,000 wa3 practically tne same as before, but,£2Coo less i was received from interest on investments, and in addition a sum of £9400 had to be written off for bad and doubtful, debts. The net result is a loss of £55CU, exclusive , ;of provision for debenturo' interest, and including the latter an addition of £29,CCQ is made to the. existing debit at profit and loss account, raising it to tho. formidable, iiguro of £84,C0t). The - company's claim against the Government has also been dismissed'with costs, and tho amount has had to be written off out of sundry reserves, reducing th'ceo" from £2\?3,7iQ to £42,500. V'

BILLS OF EXCHANGE. At tho London Institute of Bankers early in November last, Sir. Fredk. Hath Jackson delivered an address on tho proceedings of tho International Conference on bills of exchange, which was held at Tho Eaguo in Juno aild July last. Thirty-fivo nations were and in the end thirty* one nations agreed to uniformity in Iqrislation, but thoSc'"wliich stood aside included England asd tho United States. Mr. Jackson, however, considered that Ensland might well adopt tho following sections of the agreement's— • 1 • ' • '

1. That days of grace 1 should,b©abolished. 2. That-when a.'bill falls due on a non» business day, it should be payablo on t&o .next succeeding busin'c&s day. 3. That when the sum payablo by a bill is expressed-more than onco in. words, or more than once in figures, and there is a. discrepancy, tho lesser'sum shall bo the sum payable. » 4. That, when a bill is expressed to be payable with interest, and no rate of in:tcrc»3t is specified, interest at tho rate of 5 per cent, shall be understood.

5. That where the- acceptanco consists. of tho siraplo 6ignatiiro of tho drawee, it must bo on tho faco of. the bill.< 6. That whero a, bill is dishonoured by non-acceptance, a party who is !:a,b!a on tho bill' may nevertheless accept it for honour.' . - ?. That payment for honour by tho acceptor of a bill shall be prohibited. 8. That when the holder of a bill lose 3 his .right of recourse on the bill by reason of his failure duly to present or protest it, or to givo,; notice of dishonour, ho Rhall not thereby-lose hie right of action on the consideration, but thatif tho drawer or. endorser;who>n ; ho sues, lias been prejudiced by- that failure, such drawer or endorser, shall be discharaud from his liability on tho, consideration to. tho extent of any loss he may have sufi'cred. This would place England in much closer touch with the International Code. But thero are many methods of procedure in which tho international code differs from tho Anglo-American, which practically includes tho colonies; and England did not way to change, and.to brtes pressuro to bear on the colonics to do likewise. However, the result will bo two codes in the mercantile world, instead of thirty or forty.

Customs: revenue collected at the port of v Wellington yesterday amounted to £2389 16s. 9d. WHEAT AND FLOUE. By Tolcaraph—l J rcss Association—Copyright London. January 29. The total ouantity of wheat afloat for tho United Kingdom is : 2.510,000 quarters, and for tho Continent 2,035,000 quarters; Atlantic shipments, 47,500 quarters; Pacific, 15,000. quarters. Tho total shipments to Europe during tho week were 1,350,000 (Quarters, including the following.—Argentine, 299,CC0 quarters; Busma, 320,G00; Danubian provinces, 155.800: India, .165,000; Australasia, 230,000. - LONDON MARKETS. By Telegraph-Press Asaociation-Copyrichi (Rcc. January 30. 10.55 p.m.) London. January 30. Anglo steel, ,£6 7s. 6d. Wire-netting, 60 per cent, and 5 per cent, off list. LONDON WOOL SALES. By Telecraph—Press Association—Copyright (Rec. January 30, 10.55 p.m.) London, January 30. At the wool sales Elderslie secured ton price, Is. 9}d., the average being' Is. 82d. Tauro, Is. id., and llid.: Tamu, 2s. OJd. and lid.; Otairi, lid. and 9§d.; Teremeira, llid.' and. 10id. HIGH COMMISSIONER'S CABLE. The Commerce' and Tourists Division of the Department of Agriculture, Commerce, and Tohi'ists has received the following cablegram from the- High Commissioner for New Zealand, dated London, January 28. (Quotations,' unless otherwise specified, arc average market prices on 6p01.) Mutton.—Tho market is dull. Trado for all classes has been very slow, and prices are barely maintained. North Island mutton is 4d; per lb. market i* ciuiet. as a result of heavy arrivals. New Zealand • iamb, Canterbury, 3Jd. per lb.; other than Canterbury, ' sJd.j Argentine, 41d. per lb. Beef.—The market is firm. Stocks' of Now Zealand beef on hand aj*o light. New Zealand hinds, 33d.; fores, 3*d. per lb. Buttcr.—The market is very unsettled. Buyers arc kdltlinß back expecting prices to go lower. There is a- large eupp'v on hand. Choicest New Zealand butter, lOSo.; per cwt.; Australian, 101s.; Danish, 1155.; Siberian, 100s. per cwt.-

Choree.—The market is firm; and a. good demand. Coloured, CCs.; whito, 58s. per o.wt.

Hemp.—Tho ir.arkct i.i flat, and there is scarcely any demand. arc unfavourable. New Zealand sr.>crt fair, on Fpot, per to::. /?19 iCs.j fair grade. £19; fair current Manila, £18 !Cs.; forward shipment, New Zealand fair. £19 10s.; fair grade, £19 fis; fair current Manila. £19. Tho output, for the week from Manila was 28,CCD bales. Cocksfoot Seed.—The market in o.uict and buyers aro • not keen to do business. The average price for bright dean New Zealand co'Asfoot ceed, weighing . 17lb. per bushel, on spot, 13 755. per cwt. Woo!.—The market i? firmer, and confidenco is again returning. Poultry.—The market .is unchanged. Chickens, American, Brt. to 9d. per lb.; lius-sian. 7Jd. to Bid. per lb.; duckling, 6d. to 7d. per lb. FROZEN MEAT. By Telecraph—Press Association—Copyright. London, January 29.The- Frozen Meat, Trado Association's Smithfield market, quotations for the undermentioned classes of frozen meat aro based on actual, sales of not Icsr than ouo hundred carcases of mutton or lamb, and twenty-five quarters of beef of- fair average quality. Thp quotations arc not for selected lines, hut for parcols fairly representative of the bulk of tho shipments now on tho market. • The prices which follow are on. an average a fa'rthinc per lb. more than the value ex ship, this difference representing an .average cost in expenses, handling, conveyance, ana polling the ineatv- • Jan. 21 Jan. 28. button— ' • " d: ; d. Canterbury, light — —. Canterbury, medium -...... — — Canterbury, heavy — — Southland ; — North Island, best*43 ' 45-16 North.lfeland,• ordinary... 43-16 . Australian, light 33-16 Australian, heavy 31-16 • 31-16 River'.Plate/ light 3J v 3j ..•River Plate, heavy' 33 3g Lamb— ; , > • . . • light S& 513-16 . Canterbury, medium sj. - • • — Canterbury, • heavy . — • Southland : — •• ~ • • North Island, Selected.:....• -- £5 • North-Island, ordinary... . 5J • — Australian, best 1 <5 4J' "Australian.-.fair ~ . 4 Australian, inferior'...ll....'3a : 32' " .Plate- 4V« 4J 3ccf— " New-Zealand, ox fores ... 3 . '.New! Zealand, ox hinds... 3J 3g 'Australian, os fores. ...' 211-16; 23-16 Australian, ox hinds .31 ' 33 Riveir Plate, -ox fores 215-16 , 215-16 River Plate, ox hinds ... 3 7-16 3iRabbits aTO quiet, and ' prices are unchanged. ■ - . -,