COMMERCIAL ITEMS

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 134, 22 February 1923, Page 10

COMMERCIAL ITEMS

WELLINGTON STOCK EXCHANGE YESTERDAY’S BUSINESS AND PRICES At the afternoon call yesterday a sale of Union Bank shares at £l3 17s. was mado on ’change, and a sale of Dovonport Steam Ferry shares at 255. was reported. There were no transactions recorded at the morning call. The 4J per cent, stocks and bonds were unchanged at £97, tho 5 per cent. P.O. securities wore also unchanged at £97 ss. Bank shares were firm. There were buyers of Bank of New South Wales shares at £37 10s. cum dividend, a drop of 2s. Gd., Bank of New Zealand shares at £2 17s. and Union Bank shares at £l3 IGs. 6d. Wellington Trust and Loan shares advanced another Gd. and were yesterday in demand at £5 13s. There were buyers of Wellington Investment shares at 9s. 4d., and Loan and Mercantile preference stock at £73. Gas shares were quiet without any change in values. Insurance shares were firm. Buyers offered £3 13s. for National Insurance and 275. for Now Zealand Insurance. Gear Meat shares rose Gd. with buyers at 40s. and Meat Export shares, £3 12s. 6d. paid were a shilling higher ut £2 19s. Transport shares were unchanged. P. and O. Deferred Stock wore in demand at £320. Westport Coal shares were firm at 355. and Waipa Coal shares at 16s. 9d. Leyland O’Brien Timber shares were firm at 365. Crown Brewery shares were 9d. higher with buyers at £2; Manning and Co. brewery shares were a shade lower at £4 7s. _ N.Z. Drug shares were up 3d. with buyers at £2 17s. Ward and Co.’s brewery shares were firm nt 345. Yesterday’s buying and selling quotations were as follow:— WAP. LOANS—

EXCHANGE WITH AUSTRALIA RATES ADVANCED The balance of trade between Australia and New Zealand has foi some time past been in favour of the Commonwealth, and this has made the exchange position very . difficult. On February 1 the banks in Australia altered the exchange rates on New Zealand. From that date the banks offered to buy bills on New Zealand at 2,55. per cent, discount, and to sell drafts on New Zealand at ss. premium. The rates ruling up to the end of January were 20s. per cent, discount and 10s. per cent, premium. The New Zealand exchange rates on' Australia are just the reverse, tho selling rate being 255. per cent, premium and the buying rate ss. per ecut. discount. Thia means that a trader in New Zealand having, say, £lOO to receive from an Australian firm can sell his draft to a bank, or, what is the same thing, the bank will buy the draft for £99 155., but a firm having to remit £lOO to Australia and buying a bank draft would have to pay £lOl ss. In this case the bank is selling the customer credit in Australia. The position is that the Now Zealand banks have very little credit in Australia, while tho Australian bankshave considerable credit in New Zealand, and this has been brought about by the balance of trade being against Now Zealand. Wo have imported more than we have exported to Australia.

WELLINGTON’S WOOL SALE BEGINS 4 P.M. TO-MORROW The fourth wool sale of tho current season will be held nt the Town Hal 1 to-morrow. Originally it was intended to begin the salp at 9 a.m., but to meet tho convenience of buyers, who have had scarcely sufficient time to make their valuations, the sale will not begin until 4 p.m. It is hoped to get through the catalogues of Murray, Roberts, and) Co., Dalgwty end Co.,

Wright, Stephenson, and Co., and New Zealand Farmers’ Distributing Company. The catalogues of these four firms comprise! 2000 odd lots, and should bo got through in about six hours. Tho sale will be continued on Saturday, and should be concluded in ample time to allow the buyers to get awav south. There will be a full bench of buyers, and fine wools will, it is expected maintain their values. Crossbied wool, which at tho January sale was selling above London parity, is expected to fall to that parity. Wool is a world commodity, and the price in Wellington cannot bo relatively higher than in London, Antwerp, and. Boston. Occasionally there may be a disparity, but sooner or later the parity will be restored. The statistical position of wool has not changed ; it is as scarce to-day as it was a year ago, and the demand for wool has not eased. It is not to be expected that users in Bradford. Belgium, France, and the United States will pay more for wool m New Zealand than in London. Tho American representatives, it is believed will buy crossbred wools, 46-48’s, bu’t the lower counts will be left to Bradford and the Continent. It is to the Americans that we owo the improvement in crossbred wools.. For the greater part of last year merinos held sway, and with the exception of the finer qualities, crossbreds were practically neglected. Then in one big buying movement America lifted tho neglected medium qualities into quite ai strong position. It was tho strong competition of tho American buyers that made tho earlier sales in New Zealand so interesting and profitable to growers. LONDON WHEAT MARKET. (Rec. February 21, 5.5 p.m.) aub.-n.z. oablb association. London, February 20. The wheat market is quiet, owing to small Continental inquiry. Parcels are 3d. per quarter cheaper. AUCKLAND TRAM COMPANY. BY TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION. Auckland, February 20. Cabled advice from London states that a meeting to confirm the resolution for winding up tho Auckland Electric Tram Company carried the resolution. The chairman ,(Mr. C. G. Tegetmeier) and Mr. P M. Rossdale were appointed liquidators. CUSTOMS REVENUE. Customs revenue collected at the port of Wellington yesterday totalled £5489. s LONDON 6TOCK EXCHANGE. AUS.-N.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION. London, February K). Following are prices on the London share market:—Hampden, buyers Bs. 9d.. sellers 9a 5d.; Mount lilllott, Bs.. Bs. 3d.; Mount Lyell, 245. 9d„ 255. 6d.; Boulder. ss. Id., ss. 4d.; Ivanhoe, 15s. Id.; Sonsgwaliar, 6s. 3d., fis 10d.; Bank of New South Wales. .fUI 10s.; Bank of Victoria. £5 155.; Union Bank, £l3 17s. 6d.; National Bank ofAnstralaßin, £7 155.; National Bank of New Zealand, £6 55.; Bank of Now Zealand, £4 Ils. 3d.; New Zealand Loan (debentures), £77; ordinary, £B6 10s. Exchange on Berlin, 116,000 marks to £l.

Buyers. £ b. d Sellers. £ s. d. 41 p.c. Insc Stock, 1939 97 0 0 ■u— • n.o. Insc. Stock, 1938 97 0 0 — 54 p.c. Insc. Stock, 1933 —— 100 17 6 p.o War Bonds, 1941 97 0 0 — 44 p.c. War Bonds, 1939 97 0 0 4A p.c. War Bonds, 1938 97 0 0 — 4i p.c. War Bonds, 1930 97 0 0 5j p.c. War Bonds, 1930 — 100 15 0 5 p.c. P.O. Bonds. 1927 97 5 0 5 p.c. P.O. Insc. Stock, 1929 96 15 0 — 5 p.c. P.O. Inso. Stock, 1927 97 8 0 —. BANKS— National —» 6 7 6 Now South Wale® (o.d.) 37 10 0 — New Zealand 2 17 9 2 17 b Union 13 16 6 13 18 0 FINANCIAL— National Mortgage — 4 0 0 National Mortgage (Lon. don reg.) — 3 17 6 N.Z. Loan and Mera (pref.) 73 0 0 — Well. Investment 0 9 4 —— Well. Trust and Loan b 13 0 5 17 6 GAS— Wellington (£10) — 12 0 0 Wellington (pref.) 0 16 3 — Wellington (Fractions) INSURANCE— 0 5 6 — National 3 13 0 —— New Zealand 1 7 0 1 7 6 MEAT FREEZING— Gear 2 0 0 — Well. Meat Export (£5) — 4 10 0 Well. Meat Export (£3 12s. 6d.) 2 19 0 — TRANSPORT— Adelaide Steam 1 1 0 —— Huddart-Parker (ord.) 2 15 0 —- P. and 0. Def. Stock . 520 0 0 328 0 0 WOOLLEN— Wellington (ord.) — 8 17 b COAL— IVestport 1 15 0 1 16 0 Wai pa 0 Id 9 — TIMBER— Leyland-O’Brien 1 16 0 - MISCELLANEOUS— Crown Brewery 2 0 0 •— Den. and Med. (Supply 1 3 0 —- Howard Smith —- 2 13 6 Manning and Co 4 7 0 ' —— National Electric 1 0 0 — N.Z. Drug 2 17 0 —— Ward and Co 1 14 0 1 15 0