COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1116, 2 May 1911, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

INVESTMENT SHAKES. Thero were no transactions in investmen shares yesterday, and comparatively fev Quotations. - Buyers. Sellerf £3. d. £6. d National Bank — 6 } Gear Jleat (£4) - » « liear Meat (£1) — J w Meat Export (525. 6d.) — 3. ' N.Z. Shipping 11 IS 0 — Westport Coal — 1 J Leyland-O'Brien ■ 16 6 — Manning aud Co 1 U 0 — N.Z Drug 2 9 8 — Taranaki Petroleum — S Taringamutu Totara- 2 8 3 ■ Z 1U THE PEODUCE MARKETS. Danish and Siberian butters have <!e elined 4s. per civt. owing, probably, to in creased supplies. In view of this, it is no unlikely that colonial butters will decline although there is 110 movement in tha .direction as yet. The New Zealand fac lories niiift look to local consumption dur ing the winter months to relieve them o: accumulated supplies, and relief will bi forthcoming if the retail prices arc madreasonable. It is stated tnat most ot tin dealers havo a second brand on the mar kct which, while'quite as good quality £■. the better-known brand, is retailed at t lower price. There are some second brand: which are of poor ouality, and possiblj kept so to justify the higher price of the iirst grade. The shilling butters gcnerallj are believed to bo of as good quality at tho more expensive brands. The market for cheese has declined, Nov Zealand sorts being quoted in London a 61s. This i-s still a very good price, am there should be good profits in it to th< prcducors. The market for frozen meat is disap pointing. The High Commissioner's re port states that the mutton market is vcrj dull, tho lamb market is depressed, am the boef market is quiet. Practically al grades of meat are lower' in value thai they were a week ago. The outlook is 1101 very promising. Tho hemp' market i-s reported steadier with £23 as the spot price ot good fail Now Zealand hemp. The Manila output continues heavy, the figures for last wceli being 25,00(1 bales. OIL TRADE AVAIL Silence profound and unbroken enshroud; tho progress of the great fight between the Standard Oil Company and the Boyai Dutch Shell Transport Combine, the twe great representatives of the conflicting bodies of opinion in the oil industry. The first stands for vested interests which do sire to see not so much tho development ot tho world's resources a? the exploitation of existing markets for their particulai L benefit. The latter represents the new nr I rivals iu an industry which they saw was fast outgrowing the trammels of lioarj tradition; they are raady with the mil lions necessary to discover and open ui new sources of supply on an adequate scale, rccogni-sing that only by the adoption of tho iuoet progressive policy can oil coiv sumption be developed 011 the scale which the production necessitates. Half measures are useless in the oil industry. The sup ply must be copious and world-wide, or i! might as well be non-existent. Hence tin great oil industry may be said to be in a manner at a pause, awaiting the end ol this truly Titanic struggle .before pro ceeding in earnest with the 'great worii which lios before it. Efforts are doubtless being made to dcvelr-p new resources oi supply, but not on 'the scale which tlie.v would assume were peace between the bet ligereiits arranged and ratified, aud trun

aiiility assured. The l question accordingly irises, Can nothing he done to hasten the much-to-be-desired advent of peace? Are there 110 intercuts in the oil industry powerful enough to intervene between the two great protagonists and happily bring ibout an understanding which would ali'ord capital mi opportunity of playing its predestined part in the development of nature':) resources? For the proper discharge 3f its function capital requires beyond all 3l;c a- feeling ol sacurity, and thin i,s. bound to be lacking so long as the industry is subject to war's excursions and alarums. NOTES. The profits of tlio Bank ot England for the half-year ended February 23, after making provision for all contingencies ivere £653,322' lis. lid. The dividend dedared was at the rate of 'U per cent, for the half-year. The values of the Argentine International :oninierco for the year 1910 are as follow:—lmports, £70,351,130; and exports, £74,>25,210. The principal items of exports for January and February, 1911, were, in :ons:—Frozen beef, 44,145; frozen mutton, 10,896; hides, 57,982; butter, IC3; tallow, 10,919; bones, 5346; barley, 330; linseed, 105,830; maize, 45,693; hay, 8141;' wheat, 174,173; flour, 19,491; bran, 31,166; quebracho extract, 476 ii and quebracho logs, 57,385. A Parliamentary White Paper has just )een issue;! giving the total quantities of British plain spirits in bond, both in ;eneral warehouses and in distillers' warenouses in dacli Excise collection in Scotland, on January 31 and October 31, 1910. From the figures for the latter date, it lppears that a general reduction of districts mentioned, the total quantity in lond on January 31 in distillers' warehouses being 84,293.300 proof gallons, as :ompared with 82,330,700 proof gallons on Dctober 31, a decrease of 1,96'/,6G0 proof jallons. The amount in bond in'the case >f general warehouses was 22,253,000 proof ;allons on the former date, as against 11,691,000 proof gallons on the latter, being i reduction of 562,000 proof gallons. _ The argest quantity in bond in distillers' ivareliouses on October 31, for any single listrict, is shown to be 19,260,860 proof Galons at Elgin, and in general warehouses 12,106,900 proof gallons at Glasgow. The Amalgamated Association of Operative Cotton Spinners, in their report, say ;ho penny a month contributions of cotton jperatives towards the funds of the British Cotton ' Growing Association already imount to £12,000, and it is hoped they will eventually reach £30,000. As time joes on the work of the Cotton Growing Association is shown to bo more necessary. Until the sources from which cr-tton s drawn are extensive enough to enable :ho trade to cease to be almost entirely Impendent, upon any single country the trade, will continue t ohave periods of scarcity, with attendant speculation and cornering. Every day brings further proof of the spreading of the uses of oil, and it is now mnounccd that the Belgian Colonial Minister has recently authorised the construction of a pipe lino in the Congo_ for :he conveyance of. petroleum, which, it is :xpeeted, may successfully take the place >f wood now used. Tank steamers v.*ill iring the petroleum to Matadi. whore it will be stored in tanks. It will then bo 'orCed into the pipe line as . far as the Stanley Pool, a distance of 300 metres (900 it.) above sea level, where it will again lie stored for the requirements of the High ]ongo district. The distance between the ,wo terminals is about miles in a straight- line, and the pipe line will have i length of about 207 miles. It is calculated that the yearly requirements it ,hat part of the world will be about 20.CC0 ons, and that by means of the convnymce now being installed it is expected .hat the cost of petroleum at Stanley Foal vill be reduced from £6 17s. to £3 2s. 6d. )er ton! All these signs point to the fact bat we shall witness presently a. considertble amount of activity in the oil world. Customs dutie3 collected at the port of Wellington yesterday amounted to £3/62 Is. Id. HIGH COMMISSIONER'S CABLE. The Commerce and Tourists Division of he Department of Agriculture, Comjncrcc, tnd Tourisl3 has received the following cablegram of market reports froin the High Commissioner for Nfcw Zealand, aated Vpril 29, 1911. (Note: Quotations, unless itherwise stated, are average market prices >» spot.) , , „ _. Mutton.—The market is very dull. River 'late is in largo supply, and :s being •ushed for sale. Canterbury, 3Jd.{ North island, 2gd. per lb. Lamb.—The market is depressed. Canterbury, ltd.; other than Canterbury, 4d.; liver Plate, 3gd. per Jh. Bcsf.-The market is quiet. New Zeaand hind?. 3Jd.; fores. 2sd. per lb. Butter.-The market has declined 4s. for Danish and Siberian; unchanged for colonial. Choicest New Zealand butter, 1095.; Australian,' 102?:; Danish, 112:.; Siberian, )Ss. per cwt. Cheese.—Tim market is quiet, and prices slightly weaker. New Zealand, Els. per cwt. Hemp.—The market is quiet, but rather steadier. New Zealand "good fair." on jpot, per ton, £20; "fair" grade, £19 Es.; forward shipment, at the same price; talr mrrent Manila, on spot, per ton, £19; forward shipment. £19 15s. The output from Manila for the week was 25,000 bales. Wheat—The market is quiet, but ctcady. Sow Zealand long-berried wheat, on spot, :x granary, per quarter of 4561b., 325.; short-berried, 31s. 6d. (nominal). Oats.—There is a general and active demand. New Zealand oats, short SparrowHills, ex granary, on spot, per quarter of Mb.. 205.; Danish, per quarter of 3201b., 17s. 6d. - Beans.—There is more demand. New Zear land beans, f.a.q.. old crop, per 5041b., 355. Peas.—Tho market is firm, but demand only moderate. New Zealand peas (Partridge), per 5041b., 445. THE METAL MARKETS. By Telegraph—Press Association-Copyright London, April 30. Antimony, £9 10s. / Bar silver is quoted at 24 9-16 d. per ounce. Copper—On spot, £54 55.; three months', £54 17s. 6d. Tin.—For forward delivery, £193 15s. WHEAT AND FLOUR, tfy Telegraph— Press association-Copyright London, April 30. the wheat and flour afloat for the United Kingdom i 6 3.59D.CC0 quarters; for tho Continent, 3,510,000 quarters; Atlantic, shipments, 67,000. The total shipments to Europe during the week amounted to 1,335,000 quarters, including 295,0C0 from Argentina, ' 605XC0 from Russia, 120,000 from Danubian districts, E6.CGO from India, and 74,000 from Australasia. LONDON MARKETS. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright London, April 30. Wheat.—Two cargoes of Australian sold at 345. 3d., and three others at 345. 4Jd. Rabbits.—Market flat and prices unchanged. Hemp—The market i 3 inactive and prices unchanged. Cotton.— I The Liverpool quotation for middling Upland American cotton is 7.96Jd, per lb. Rubber.—Fino hard Para rubber is quoted at ss. 3d. per lb. Copra—The market is firm. South Sea, in bags, £21 10s. per ton. DALGETY AND CO., LTD. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright London, April 30. Messrs. Dalgety and Company, Ltd., have declared an interim dividend of 8 per centum. INVESTMENT MORTGAGE AND DEPOSIT CO. THE ANNUAL MEETING. The annua! general meeting of shareholders in tho New Zealand Investment Mortgage and Deposit Company was held in the Chamber of Commerce at noon yesterday. Mr. W. G. Foster (chairman of directors) presided, and about sixteen shareholders attended. Commenting on the business of the year as disclosed in the report and balancesheet (already published), tho eliairmau said shareholders would agree with him that tho company had done quite a satisfactory twelve months' business. Steady progress was shown ill the volume both of deposits and of mortgages. If they looked carefully into the figures shareholders would see that the company's finance had been thoroughly well adjusted from every point of view. Improvement was shown in various directions. First of all capital had increased slightly, and with the deposits, which showed an increase of £16,316, there had been very substantial possibilities during the year. The whole of tho money had been carefully invested, and mortgages showed an increase of £10,362. The couipany had also special deposits and accrued interest totalling £8024 175., and cash in bank amounting to £1717 4s. sd. Some might think that these sums should have been invested in "flat" mortgage, but a company taking large sums of money at short date must so arrange its finance as to he able to meet demands for these sums at any moment. Another matter for satisfaction was that the item, "preliminary expenses," had this year been wiped oil the balance-sheet. Shareholders should rcnicnibe'', however, that the amount expended in floating tho company constituted an asset. In the present case it was now embodied in the goodwill of the company. The operations of the company during the past year lnd resulted in a very substantial profit- (£1647 10s. 5d.). The board thought it would be wise to pay nc more than five per ccnt. dividend, and tc applv the surplus to the reserve fund. A larger dividend could, have been paid, but personally, the sneaker thought the right course had been followed. Strength should be tho first consideration at all times \s to mortgages, the company had nothins

on its books that caused directors the slightest anxiety. Interest hid bcon promptly paid in every case whk-h indicated that the directors had been eireful to conserve thareholderj' interest:; by throwing out a great number of applications that they did not think gjod enough. Particularly gcod :;:cluetics hart bicn outlined, and the eompanyhad no foreclosed properties whatever. As to the volume ol' business, the directors opined that they wero .doing: quite Fullicient wifh the- capital at their command. Whether shareholders might think it desirable to increase their capiial and so warrant a bigger 'business, rested with themselves. There were a number c-f shares unallotted, and thu directors would be pleased to consider applications for these from shareholders. The directors did not particularly desire to offer these shares to the general public*, notwithstanding the fact that they aad every confidence in the company and its prospccts. Larger business, naturally, would mean reduced expenses in working. Concluding, Mr. Foster moved that the recommendation of the board be approved, namely, that a half-yearly dividend at the rate of five per cent, be inauo payable on May 1, and that £400 be transferred to the rc.-erve fund. Mr. Charles Pliramer seronded the motion, which was carried without discussion. The retiring directors (Messrs. A. S. Bisa and Gerald Fitzgerald) were re-elected. Messrs. Ilenry Kpmber and Son were appointed auditors at a fee of £15 15s. Mr. A. A. GeUntly proposed that the remuneration of .the directors should be as hitherto, an aggregate rum of £100. Mr. Jas. Reid seconded. Mr. A. Pi. Bothamley thought that this motion should not. pass without comment. Delivering their first report, in 1907, the directors had stated that they looked forward with confidence to the future of the company. At the time this might have been no more than a pious hope, but the statement- of the directors, made at that time, had since been fully justified. It was only fair to express, what no doubt every shareholder agreed in believing, that the remuneration of the directors was a quite insufficient reward for the services they had rendered to the company. The motion was carried unanimously. Sir. Foster said the directors were perfectly satisfied with the remuneration mentioned. He firmly believed that the company would continue to prosper, notwithstanding an oninion he had heard expressed. that there was no room far small companjes. This, in the speaker's oninion. was a very great mistake. Small companies thrive on business that the big companies would turn up their noses at. The small company \va«, pro rata, more remunerative. Shareholder'; might look to the future with perfect complacency. Messrs. Fitzgerald and Biss thanked the shareholders for re-electing them as directors. Mr. Biss remarked that during the last eighteen months directors of most financial institutions in New Zealand had had an anxious time. Owing to the conservative nature of its business and the care exercised, no anxiety had been felt by directors of this company. < There was not an item in its books that did not show a safe margin between the amount of the advance and the value of the security. A very strong temptation bore on new companies, to show lorcc profits and pay larccc dividends. The directors of this company, were unanimous in setting thin temptation aside, and discarding "baits" offered almost daily. The poUcv of the company -Md been to make safe investments at 6 ov 7 per cent, rather than tako a considerable risk in order to get 9 or 10 per cent. This'policy, the speaker would continue to cvnpo r t. . , , On bchMf of the directors and shareholders Mr. F. G. Bolton moved t.hat the staff of the company be accorded a vote of thanks for services rendered dun"- l bo past year. The secretary (Mr. C. I?. Stuart) hart "done a gmat r'.ea! more than was ordinarily, done by the secretary of a company such as this. TTis services liad of rrreat value to the dirccto-s. not. only during the past year, but since the inception of the comnanv. . , The miti-m was earned, and Mr. btuart briefly, replied. PROPERTY SALES. Messrs. J. 11. Bethune and Co. report having recently effected the undermentioned sales of eitv and suburban properties City—St. M'.iry Street, freehold section having 32ft. frontage by a depth of 92ft,, with 4-rcomcd dwelling, with usual conveniences, £750; Tinakori Read, lcasenoju 'property. ft. x U7ft„ together with 3roomed dwelling, £2M: CnUomhonso Quay, business block with a frontage of 3DftT by a depth of iCEft. 6in.. together with the extensive three-story brick building thereon. £16,0C3. t Suburban.—Ngaio, elevated bunding site, containing over- half an acre, £110; Abbot Road, freehold section, having a frontage of 53ft. by a long depth, £153; close station, building site, 45/t. x 12uft., £K0; Day s Bav, two freehold sections, each having an* area of over 19 perches, £150 the two: Rona Ray,.seaside section, with area of one-eighth of an acre, together with 4roomed cottage, £3CC; Karon, level buildsite, having a frontage of CGit. by a d»pth oMGOft, £193; Silverstream. large freehold block of nearly four acres, together with bungalow residence, £11011; Pliminerton Extension subdivision, seaside section, ttft.'x 12-ft.. £50; Petono, Jaekcon Street, corner business site, 23ft. s 9uit., £784; Kilbirnic, Seatonn Road, section 3'.fc. x 'Gift., together with shop and 6-roomed dwelling. £750; Miramar. Ronsatai Terrace, section 65ft. X 166 ft., to 188 ft., £190; Itotaitai, Rata Road, land 45ft. by ItCft., together with new dwelling of 5 rooms, £ils. ' ,