COMMERCIAL ITEMS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2693, 12 February 1916, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS

INVESTMENT SHARES. There were no transactions in invest ment shares yesterday. The quotations were as under:— Buyers. Sellers. £ s. a. £ s. d. National Bank 5 0 0 — Bank N.Z. f£6 13s. 4d.) ... 16 7 6 - • Union Bank : 60 0 0 — N.Z. and R. Plate — 2 0 6 . Well. Invest. T. and A.... — 011 0 Well. Trust, Loan, Ltd. ... 7 0 0 7 1 0 Well. Gas (£10) — 16 15 0 Well. Gas (pref.) — 0 19 0 Gear Meat (£1) — 4 4 0 Well. Heat Export (£2 125.. 6d.) 214 6 — N.Z. Shipping (ord.) 18 5 .0 - N.Z. Shipping (pref.) 10 5 0 — ■ Union Steam (ord.) 16 9 17 0 'Well. Woollen (ord.) 4 17 6 — c Well. Woollen (pref.)< 3 5 0 — Westport Coal 18 3 — .Manning and Co 4 12 '0 — N.Z. Drug ... 2 4 6 _ N.Z. Portland Cement ... — 010 9 N.Z. Paper Millfi — 016 6 Sharland (ord.) 14 3 — Bharland (pref.) 14 3 — Ward and Co 5 10 0 — W.P.O.A. (£5) - 6 2 0 *Ex dividend. Customs revenue collected at the port of Wellington yesterday amounted to £3736 ISs. 7d. WELLINGTON WOOL SALE, lhe Wellington wool sale postponed from January 2b will bo held in the Concert Chamber of the Town Hall on Monday, commencing at 9 a.m., and tho ealo will be continued on Tuesday. Tho catalogues to be submitted by the. several brokers show an aggregate of oyer 38.CC0 bales, and represent the wool received "up to January 15, and intended exclusively for the January sale. This means that no wool that has reached Wellington since that date !■ has been included, and' this is a" point that growers should note. The Jjuyere havo been for several days assessing values, and it is anticipated that there will be a full bench, and that prices will be very much in favour of growers. NAPIER WOOL SALES. By Telegraph".—Press Association. Napier, February 11. It has been decided to hold tlio Napier wool sales on Friday, February 18. ' STANDAItD INSURANCE CO. ' Dunodin, February 11. The annual report of the directors of the Standard Insurance Company states that tho income, including balance brought forward from last year, amounts to £145,846, and the expenditure to £100,621, leaving, a. balance of £45,225. From this amount an interim dividend was paid in June amounting to £3760. The directors have dealt with the balance as follows:—To xeservo fund, £1600; to reinsurance reserve fund, £SCO; to guarantee and provident fund, £200; to depreciation of securities, ,£2500. They recommend that the balanco bo appropriated as follows :-To pay a dividend for half-year ended December 31 at tho rate of Is. 3d. pel' 6hare, absorbing £6250, and to carry forward to next year £9225. SOUTHERN MARKETS. Glirlstcliurch, February 11. The cabled Tcports that the whole of tho surplus wheat crop of Australia had been Hold to tho Imperial authorities caused more local inquiries for wheat, and enabled a number of sales to be made, but the later report that negotiations for the purchase had not been confirmed steadied business again. The local market is sensitive to operations in Australia iir- {lie event of the surplus not being placed in Europe, and the possibility of exports being made to New Zealand, more par- j ticuinrly in tho form of flour. There is no change in prices locally, sales of new wheat having been made at ss. and ss. Id. at country stations, mostly at the former figure, and an odd lot of old wheat at 6s. 2d. It is reported that t-lio new wheat is milling well, being thinner in skin, and is making stronger flour than last scason'6 wheat. o<its are dull of sale. There is no disposition on the part of merchants to lay In stocks in view of the liravp crop available in Southland. There is practically no shipping business at present. A few lines of Cartons have been purchased at 3s. Jd. to 3s. 3d., but growers' ideas of values are generally much higher. Oatshcaf chaff is dull of sale in the absence of any shipping business. AUSTRALIAN PRODUCE MARKETS. Sydney, February 11. Bran, £5; pollard, £6. Melbourne, February 11. Bran, £4 10s.: pollard. £6: barley, Englitli, 3s. lOd. to 4s. 3d.: Cape, 2s. 10',d. to 35.; o&ts, milling, Algerians, 2s. S'.cl, to 2s. 3d.: feed, 2s. 21d.i mahse. fis. 2d.; potatoes, £12 £12 Ui.i oaioas, £2 10s, to £4, w v* , '•!> "s ✓ "••• ""

• BANK OF ENGLAND RETURN. (Rec. February 11, 10 p.m.) London, February 10. Tho Bank of England return issued for the week ended "Wednesday, February 9, is as under:— Issue Department, Note Issu® £72.146.000 Gov. debt ... £11,015,000 Other securities 7.434,000 Gold 63,637,000 £72,146,CG0 £72,116,000 Banking Department. proprietors' a Gov. sccuricapital £14,553,000 tics ... Public do- a Other secuiijiosits ••• 62,641,000 tics ... 0 tlicr deposits ...103,531,000 Notes... »» .»« Rest, 7-day raid otber bills Coin ... ... a Tho above table cannot be completed owing to two important items not being: cabled. Tho leading items ol the Bank of Eng. land return afford the following comparison:— This'weck LastTfeek Lastyear Bullion 53,697.000 5*2,260.000 66.003.0 C Reservo ... 39.861X013 3G.m(!QO- 51.239.000 Note Circulation 52.£66.CU0 3UG9.000 34,415.000 Public Deposits (52,641.000 58.246,000 46.4J6.C00 Other Deposits 108,531.000 98.534.000 U5.830.0C0 Proportion of reserve to liabilities 24.43 23.55 31.57 GOVERNMENT SECURITIES. Tha following are the latest quotations for Colonial Government securities in comparison with those ruling last week:—

There is a good m demand for Colonial Stocks with few offering, 3IONEY MAEKET. «-n TE f n , Bank 5?F !and , dis c°imt rate was on January 2, 1914, reduced from 5 to 4J per oont., on January 22 it was reduced to "tX on . Jam " lr y 28 3 Per cent. Uu July 30 the rate was raised to 4 nor cent., and on July 31 it was raised to 9 Slf,, j'* an £. on Al, S ust lit was further advanced to 10 per cent. On August 6 the r.ate was reduced to 6 per cent., on August 'V was further reduced to 5 per cent., at which rate it now stands. The Bank of Prance rate is 5 per cent, as against 4 per cent, prior to the war. OPEN MARKET KATE. The open market discount rate' for threo months' bills is 4J per cent., as compared with 5J per cent, last week and 15 per cent, last year. Short loans arc quoted at 4J per cent., as against 4j per cent., last week, and 11 per cent, last year. COLONIAL AND OTHER, PKODUCE. TVlieat is quieter and easier. Flour is firm, but inactive. Oats are quiet. Bahia Blanca, FebruaryMarch shipment, 345. 3d. Peas and beans are steady;' but quiet. Butter is steady. Colonial is firmer. The quantity marketed is small, owing to slow discharge. .Australian, choicest salted 1465. to 1495., unealted 1565. to 160e.; New Zealand, salted 150s. to 1545., unsalted' 160s. to 1645.; Argentine, Ealted 1445., unsaltcd 150s. to 1525. Oheeso is easier, owing to larger prospective supplies. New Zealands, 975. Sugar is firm.. American granulated,3ss. Bradford Tops.—Thero is a small businoss doing, aiid prices are well maintained. METAL MARKETS. Copper-On spot, £104 per ton; forward delivery, £103; electrolytic, on spot, JEI32; forward delivery, £135. Tin—On spot, £179 10s. to £179 ss. per ton. I'ig-iron, 935. 7Jd. per ton. Load—Soft foreign, on. spot. £32 to £31 15s. per ton. Syjltcr, £92 to £96 per ton.

Variation £ii « ... compared • block " Price. with. last week. £ s. d. 2J% Imperial Consols CS 10 0 7/6 lower 34 n War Loan ' fc8 '3 6 unchanged 44,, War Loan 97 0 0 unchanged i ,.N.S.W.iD33Jan.-July b7 0 0 127/6 lower -54 \.N.S.W.10il0-50MivSp 95 5 0 5/- higher 34 „N*S»W. Early Curr 81 15 0 5/- higher 3 ,.N .S. W .1925 Apl.-Oct 71 5 0 25/- higher i „ Vic. 1920Jan,'July 24 0 0 5/-higher 84 ,/Vio. 19*21-6 Jan.-July 85 7 6 2/6 higher' 3 ..Vic. 10-29-49Jan.-July 0210 o 50/- lower 34 „6.A; 11)115 Jan.-July 73 35 o 15/- higher 3 ,.S.A, 1916 Jan.-July 57 10 o unchanged' 4 nQ'l'dlOlS-Qi Jan.-July 00 5 0 15/- hicher 34 „Q J dl9"2'2-47Jan.-July 86 10 o 5/- lower 3 t>3 15 0 15/--hither' 4 ] N.Z. 1920 May-Nov. 87 0 o unchanged 3-J N.Z. 1012-40 Jan.Jly 74 0 o 40/- hitrhcr L < w Z / 64 0 0 10/-higher 34 '-W.A. 1915-35M'y-N'v 7b 12 6 12/6 lower 3 ''W A, 1915-35 M'y-Nov 69 0 0 10/-higher 34 Tas 3920 Jan-July 73 5 o 55/- higher 3 Taa 1920-40 Jan-July 66 1 3 unchanged