THE MUTTON MARKET UP.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1178, 13 July 1911, Page 8

THE MUTTON MARKET UP.

AMERICANS AND THE BEEF TRADE. A London' writer, in dealing with tlio conditions of trado in frozen produce, predicts "a continuance of the upward trend of prioss" for lamb and mutton. Ho also says: "It is a fact to be ,noted that tho l efforts which have been successfully niade ; to pull tlio frozen meat market "from. the bottom level at which it recently stood, have not been supported by importers of South American.meat.The movement has not been characterised by unanimity of action on the part of • all importers of New Zealand'meat. ...Suffice it that the lifting process has been accomplished. As. far as I can see the conditions which mate for better values, all round just now, form a solid foundation for a firmer market' for some time t<> comeJ The enormous output, soiuo -say it has reached 170.000 carcases of lamb a woek, can only be accounted for by tlio fact that people aro eating moro meat. The European nutlet cannot yet be said to be au appreciable, factor,'and it is evidently better times among tho working classes which is responsible, for this expanded consumption. What this expansion, has been is seen . by the fact that in the first four months of this year the five million odd carcases of frozen mutton ajul lamb imported into the United' Kingdom from all sources, is an increase of something liko 25 per cent, on laft year. Of' the beef market, the writer says it is "a despair in? market," He proceeds: "It is tho old *tory of swamping of tho market by South American chilled, supplies. I'egardless, it would seem, of overv consideration of price and demand, the Yankees and South Americans see fit to pour in their stuff, a gend deal of it in nolle' too good a condition. Lates suifor all round. Forward inquiries for frozen beef are better than present business, and this really means, as far as •Australian besf is concerned, that the nodule scare is pretty well dead. I could name several of the biggest buyers in t.he Kingdom who linvo resumed their ■purchases. The chilled Klut on the markot verv effectually spoiled prices fetched bv the" Marathon, shipment of -imw ■chilled beef, and it. occurs to mo. that it nno were to cast hp the accounts of all .the Antipodean chilled beef shipments, [the balance would I fancy, be. rather on ithe wrong side. Possibly, when the maiijscts of this country aro eased bv now outlets, there will not f n "j Btantlv recurring risk of chilled beef fetching ruination prices. So far, it, seems wmply a matter of tiie Americans picasure."