FINANCE and COMMERCE

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 74, 20 December 1933, Page 14

FINANCE and COMMERCE

STOCKS AND SHARES Firm Market Yesterday SHARP RISE IN WAHIS Little change was seen yesterday in the ■Wellington market, whicir.wae generally firm tartan active demand, There “ notable” advance- .im-Waihi - Gold Mine shares.: which sold at .£9/-. compared with A higfepoUflast Late bus-, ers stayed in at 28/9, but sellers held for 30/-l?i■Other mining shares were dull, with little demand. ■ ... • ’ Marked firmness, was also shown by Colonial: Sugars, which advanced to iM without-response from'holders. ISew Zealand .Farmers’ 'Fertiliser'sold strongly at 19/-, 'buyers quoting 18/6 at the close. Dominion .Fertiliser were firm at lb/6, seilerk 17/9. j~ Breweties were dull. New Zealands were sought at 30/9, sellers asking 37/3. Carltons were wanted at 42/6. Welling* ton .Woollens, preference, were quoted 1/lower at £5/9/-, but sellers were firm, at £5/15/-, and'at 1/- less for the ordinaries. Insurance shares were quiet but firm Que?nslands advahced to 62/-, without response.! New Zealands were unchanged at 56/9’,"and Nationals were steady at 18/3. , In the financial and pastoral section, Goldsbrough Morts were 6d. better at 33/6, ,po,“sellers. , Wellington Trust and Loan were 6d. up at 83/-. r There' was an improved demand for banks, quoted prices being slightly easier in some, cases. Australasias were o/lower at £ll/15/-. and E., -S. and' A. Banks were a shade off at £5/10/-. New Zealands were steady at 47/-. , Active interest was shown in giltedged securities, Most of the Government issues were quoted, prices Showing little change. Local body and other debentures were firm on an active demand. Wellington Racing Club debentures were 30/- up at £97/10/-. WELLINGTON EXCHANGE Latest Quotations . Buying and selling quotations at the final call yesterday on the Wellington Stock Exchange were as follow: — n.Z. govt, loans. Buyers. Sellers. £Sd £ s d

Freshford Gold Dredge By Telegraph.—Press Association. , Gore, December 19. At a special general meeting of the Freshford- ; G01d . Dredging Company last evening tlie affairs of the company were discussed, and it was decided to spend up to £lOO on engaging a competent engineer anil -driller to rebore the gppund with the 6in. rig dredge.' at present idle. Paddy’s Point Dividend Paddy's Point Gold Mining Company has paid its second dividend of 5 per cent., making'lo per cent, for the year. Af the annual meeting the chairman said the company had certain ments to face early next year, and the directors could not see their way to payment of more than 5 per cent.

DEALINGS ON ’CHANGE Sales Recorded Yesterday RETURN ON INVESTMENTS Sales recorded on Potulnion Stock Exchanges yesterday are.shown,in the 10l lowing list. In the second column is. given the .return based on the last annual .dividend from investment at the quoted price. In calculating the return on shares in companies which pay their dividends outside New Zealand the exchange rates have uot been taken into consideration. Lho re--turn on 4 per cent. Government Iqans-ln-Cludes redemption. In the case of 31 per cent, loans the,return is for interest alone, and covers only the period tor which the loans are tax-free. No return is given on local body securities and debentures In the meantime. WELLINGTON. Return

NATIONAL MUTUAL LIFE ... Strong Position Maintained New business . written by ,the sassocia-; tion for .the' year ended September 30, 19.33, amounted to £7,577,445, being £1,027,784 in excess of that written, for the previous year. The total income wan £4,662,814, which included £3.238,307 for premiums and £1,424,507 (affer deduction of rates and taxes. amounting to £292,090) for interest. ’ The total amount paid to policy-holders or their representatives during the year was £3,043,708. The total assurances in force at the end of the year amounted to £85,559,573.. ' , i As a result of the year’s transactions 4he sum of £1.214,801. was. added to the assurance fund, which, amounted to £36,243,174 at the close, of the year. The. investment 'reserve fund .was also added to and now amounts to £776,244. Bonus'certificates showing reversionary bonuses allotted to policies for the policy year .current at September 30,1933, will be issued in March,’l934. SYDNEY STOCK EXCHANGE . Strong and Active Market (Received December 19, 8.55 p.m.) Sydney, December 19. On the Sydney Stock Exchange to-day there was a strong market and a heavy turnover. Sales: Bank of New South Wales, £3l ;15/-; Commercial Bank of Sydney, £l7 10/-; Colonial Sugar, £64/15/-; Associated ..ews, 21/-; ditto, pref.. 22/-; Burns Philp. South Seas. 31/9: Howard Smith, 13/6. Australian Gas. A. £7/10/-; ditto, B. £7/11/-. Australian Glass, 50/6; British Tobacco, 37/9; Tooths, 43/9; Tooheys, 24/3; Carlton Brewery, 43/7}; Dunlop Perdriau. 20/-. Goldsbrough Mort, 34/10}; Henry Jones. 34/-; Winchcombe Carson. 30/-; Wilcox Mofflin. 12/3; Electrolytic Zine. 26/9; Millaquin Sugar, 30/9. Fairymead Sugar, 33/-; Lustre Hosiery, 10/1 J; Anthony Hordern, 13/9: W. R. Carpenter. 42/-. Mount Morgan. 59/9; Broken Hill Proprietary, 43/3; North Broken Hill, S7/9:Bulolo Gold. £5/9/-; Kuala Kainpar Tin. 42/-. Commonwealth bonds, 4 per cent., 1938, £lO3/12/6; 1941. £lO4/o/-; 1944, £lO4/17/6; 1947. £lO5/3/9; 1950. £lO5 15/-: 1953. £lO6/2/6; 1955, £lO5/5/-; 1957. £lO5/5/-; 1959. £lO5/12/6; 1961, £lO6/5/-. Morning sales included : Commonwealth bonds. 4 per cent., 1938, £lO3/11/3 ; 1941, £lO4/10/-; 1944. £lO4/12/6; 1947. £lou 3/9; 1950. £lO5/15/-; 1955. £lO5/1/3; 1957. £lO5/6/9; 1959, £lO5/12/6; 1961, £lO6/5/-; Commercial Bank of Sydney, £l7/10/-; Bunk of New South Wales, £3l/15/-; Australian Gas, A, £7/11/-; Associated News, 20/6. pref. 21/6; British Tobacco, 37/9; Goldsbrough Mort, 34/6; Howard Smith, 13/6; Millaquin Sugar. 30/9: Winchcombe Carson, 30/-. Melbourne, December 19. Sales on the Melbourne Stock Exchange to-day included: Commercial Bank of Australia, pref., £9/5/1; Metropolitan Gas. £l3/7/-: British Tobacco. 37/6; Australian Glass, 50/3; Gordon and Gotch, 40/6 ; Herald} and Times, 49/9 ; Goldsbrough Mort, 34/3; Mount Lyell. 23/- ;South Broken Hill, 65/-. A substantial improvement in the results of Buckley and Nunn; Ltd., drapers, Melbourne, is reported for the year ended July 24. Net profits amounted to £30,532, compared with £18,506 for the preceding 12 months, and a loss of £24.622 for the 1931 term. With £BOO6 brought forward, the amount available for distribution is £38,538. The payment of the 7 per cent, cumulative preference dividend requires £10,500. and an ordinary dividend of 6 per cent, for the year fakes £19,442. leaving £8595 to be carried forward. Last year no distribution was made on ordinary shares, and in 1931 the return was 21 per cent.

ACTIVE WOOL MARKET Wellington’s January Offering . FEBRUARY QUOTA FULL The second Wellington wool sale of the season will be held on January 11,, starting at 9 a.m. As announced in this column last week, tiie quantities of wool received into store were so J heavy that the limit- of 30,000 bales for this sale was easily reached and the catalogues were closed early. The following are brokers’ offerings for January 11 iu the order Of sale: — Bales Dalgety and Co., Ltd 5426 Murray, Roberta and Co., Ltd., and Johnston and Co., Ltd. .. 3594 Levin and Co., Ltd. .. 6877 N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd 4519 N.Z. Farmers’ Co-op. Distributing (Jo., Ltd 3099 Wairarapa Farmers’ Co-op. Association Ltd 1517 Abraham and Williams Ltd. and IVright, .Stephenson and Co., Ltd. ...4968 Total 30,000 The original allocation for the February wool sale at Wellington was 25.000 bales, but already the quantity on hand in store is sufficient for a 30.000 bale sale and it is understood that the limit for the sale will be extended to the latter figures. Dunedin’s first sale will be held today, the offering totalling some 29,0,90 bales. The next, sale will be at Napier on January 6. with an offering of 30,000 bales, and Wellington will follow five days later. Bradford Tops Very Firm By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright London, December 18. Bradford tops quotations are very firm. Topmakers are insisting on 37M for warp 64’s. SYDNEY WOOL PRICES This Season’s Record The Australian record price for wool this season was broken last week for the second time during the Sydney series, when a Continental buyer gave ’37 id for seven bales of AAA branded Plumthorpe. The.wool. Was.extra. superfine'Jn quality, of good staple,-light in condition, and soft.,. The New-Zealand. Loan and Jlercan-’ • tile Agency -Co., Ltd.,- stated that: the clip came from Mr. Norman Burdekin, Plumthorpe, Barraba, and was equal to, if not better than, those of previous seasons.' The company adds: Twenty-two other lines of fleece sold at from 35-}d to 231 d, broken to 23jd, and bellies to 19Jd. The highest prices for these descriptions are records to date, with the exception of broken, which equals the previous record. A special feature also was the inclusion of some of the choicest lines . of lambs that have been seen in the Sydney market for some time; it is doubtful if anything better has been seen in the Geelong centre. For super AAA lambs, five bales sold to 28Jd; this also represents a record. Another clip which showed superfine quality was that sold on account of Mr. C. E. Suttor, of Gundowda, Hargraves, which realised 37d for 17 bales A sup c. Twenty-four other • lines of fleece sold at from 32}d to 22Jd. The price paid for the locks, 13Jd, was also a record for ■ this description in the Sydney market ■. so far this, season. . -. ■ ... . The .'president of the Graziers’vAssocia-.i /■'tio'ff'/Sti f<T’’tli’atr'- Altlib'iigK"it’ was unwise'* ty emphasise -the’ importance of the top lines of extra choice clips, as they were apt to be an unreliable guide to the marI ket, .it was encouraging that the. record: ■ prices of .the'current season were well ■in advance of.the record prices for last; season. Market conditions generally this season were decidedly encouraging, more i particularly in view of the low prices of the last three-seasons. The. progress of the wool market this season encouraged : the belief that those better prices would continue for some time. . Mr. Walker added that unquestionably : the most regrettable and disquieting feature of the current season had been the great quantity of wool sold on station or farm, especially for direct shipment for nulls abroad. This constituted a grave menace to the whole auction system of marketing, and the Graziers’ Association ■viewed the position'with much concern.. •There was reason to believe that growlers who sold in" the country this year lost so heavily that they would be much Jess inclined to sell in the country next Reason. Anything that could be reasonably, done to encourage them to. market . their wool in the auction centres should be ;dbne. as soon as possible. FOREIGN EXCHANGES Position of Sterling ’ (British Official Wireless.) London, December IS. The following rates oh foreign exchanges were current to-day, compared With those ruling on December 16:—

Gold and Sliver. London, December 18. 1,01d.—£6/6/9 per fine ounce. Silver.—Cash, 18 -J-Sd per ounce; forward, 18 11-l Gd. Dollar Conversion Rates The Associated Banks have agreed that the conversion rates from December IS will be:— U.S.A. Canada. Conversion of dollar bills received for collection and sale of dollar drafts 5.00 4.9 S Purchase of dollar bills . 5.20 5.1 S These conversion rates are, ot course, ascertained on a sterling basis (London funds), and therefore current rates of exchange New Zealand on London will also be charged or allowed as the case may r.-quire. Mataki Gold Dredge By Telegraph.—Press Association. Auckland, December 10. The Mataki Gold Dredging Co., Lid. reports a return for lart week of 270 z for 135 hours’ work.

LIVE STOCK MARKET ' Central Hawke’s Bay Prices , WAIPUKURAU SALE Dominion Special Service. Waipukurau, December 19. There was a large yarding of cattle and sheep at the weekly sale for Central Hawke’s Bay . to-day. The demand for the former was very restricted and stores were easier. Prices of sheep generally remained firm. Cattle: Eight light prime P.A. cows, £3/7/-; medium P.A. cows, £2/18/-;. medium Shorthorn cows, £2/18/6 to £2 17/6:; four medium Jersey cross cows, £2; medium P.A. heifer, £2/7/6; 56 P.A. steers, £4/9/-; 27 extra good P.A. steers, £5/9/-; 39 younger P.A. cross steers, £4/5/-; seven others, £3/15/-; 27 twoyear P.A. steers, £3/10/-; 14 others. £3 5/-; 45 yearlings, £3; 15 P.A. heifers, £2/9/6; four yearlings, 27/-; two vealers, 35/-; springing dairy heifer, £3/6/6. Sheen: 156 fat ewes, 11/3; five Others, 11/6; "large pens lambs ranged to £1 for 10 prime heavy; 36 wethers headed that section of fats at 21/3; 158 4-tooth wethers, 17/10. Stores: 183 forward rape lambs, 15/9; 57 2-tooth . wethers, 14/9. Feilding Sale Prices Au average entry of fat sheep came forward at the Feilding sale on Friday. The market for fat ewes was fully up to : late rates, and fat lambs were keenly competed for and were sold in. advance of. schedule rates; fat wethers,- although few in number, eased slightly. The store sheep, section, with .the exception, of .two-tooth, wethers, comprised only odd lots. The competition was keen throughout,' and sales were made on a:par with previous rates. Fat-cattle were yarded in smaller numbers, with the exception of dairy beef. Competition was not keen, and a slight easing was evident. A small penning of store cattle sold irregularly, with the ex--ception of two or three lota of straight lines, which showed breeding and quality, and were sold •at recent market prices. The dairy section contained a mixed assortment, which met with very slack sale, ■'. . Dalgety and Co., Ltd., report the following sales: Fat shorn lambs, 12/6, 18/9; fat two-iooths, 16/9 ;• fat wethers. .18/-, 18/9; fat maiden ewes, 12/3, 12/6; fat four-tooth, ewes, 15/-; fat shorn ewes. 11/3. 11/6, 11/10, 12/-, 12/1; woolly ewes. 100 per cent. b.f. lambs nt foot.. 27/5. 27/6; dairy, heifers, springing,-: £2/2/-; two-vear Jersey bull, £3; light’ fat‘KA. heifers. £3/13/-; fat P.A cows,' £4/3/-: fat cows, dairy sorts, 23/6. 27/6, . 33/-, . 39/-; .store cows,. 17/-, 18/G. 30/-. 31/-. Abraham arid Williams Ltd. made sales as follow :—Fat sheep: Fat lambs, 17/10. 18/6, .to 22/-: fat woolly-hoggets. 19/1, 23/-, 25/4; fat ewes. ,9710. 12/7, to 14/1; fnt maiden owes. 19/3. ,Fat cattle: Fat. cows. £2/1/-. £3/2/-. £3/5/-. £«/£>/-:•' fat heifers. £2/1/-, £2/10/-. to £3; fat: steers,- £5/10/-: vealers. 30/- to 35/-. Store cattle: Two-year P.A.- steers, £2 15/-; three-year steers. £2/11/- to £3 17/-; two-vear Hereford heifers, £l/15/-'; two-year P.A. heifers. £2; yearling Jersey heifers r.w.b.; 27/6: notter cows. 11/to* 217-. Dairy cattle: Springing heifers, £2/12/6; springing cows, £2 to £2/7-/6. A Novel Savings Bank At the meeting of Joseph Lucas' he'd early in November a novel scheme was approved lor giving the ers a higher rate ot interest on their sav-'. ings than is usually, possible, with, it is hoped, complete security of capital, says - "The Times.” . A new bank, called at present the Lucas Workers’ Share Bank, will be formed either as a separate company or aa a trust which will be run quite independently of Joseph Lucas. There will be created up to 160,000 shares of Joseph Lucas of a special class, to be styled the Lucas redeemable preference shares. The rate of -dividend on. these shares will not be fixed, as is usual with preference shares, but will equal the amount of dividend on the ordinary shares, whatever that may be in the future. These shares will not be issued direct to the workers. When the bank is formed the workers will be allowed to deposit their savings up to a certain extent. The amounts deposited will then be invested upon the following basis: For each £T of deposits 10/- will be invested in the .Lucas redeemable shares, which will be issued to the bank at par; thus the dividend upon which the bank would be able to count this year, to take an example, would be 124 per cent. The other 10/will be invested in full trustee securities which will earn 3 to 31 per cent. The average . earnings of the depositors’ money therefore will be 7i to 8 per cent., and allowing J per cent., for reserve to cover fluctuations in outside investments, it would be possible to pay 7 to ~i per Cent, to the workers who deposit their money with the bank as long as conditions. remain as at present. In order to ensure so far as possible 100 per cent, safety for the depositors, all money that is received by Joseph Lucas for the redeemable preference Shares will be put back into the bank in the form of capital. This money will likewise be invested in trustee securities, and for the use of it the bank will pay the company a rate not more than it. would earn if it was directly invested in trustee securities. The adoption of such a-policy means that this money will be at the disposal of the bank for paying depositors who may wish for the return of their money, and thus there will be 100 per cent, cover in trustee securities for all money deposited. The number, of redeemable shares which the company may issue to the bank is limited to 100,000, which means that the bank will be able toaccept deposits up to £200,000. The company will also lend or guarantee the bank temporary loans up to a maximum of £10.000; this is to enable a start to be made or to cover a sudden request for withdrawals before securities 'could be realised. Bell Kilgour Gold Return ' The secretary of the Bell-Kilgour Goid Mining Co M Ltd., reports that the Avasliun for the week ended December 15 from development, work amounted t 0 lOoz. odwts. Commonwealth Conversion Loan Loudon, December 18. The Commonwealth conversion loan has closed. It is understood that there •was a highly satisfactory percentage of conversions, consequently cash applicants will receive only a small amount. AUCTION DIARY TO-DAY. Johnsonville Christmas fat stock sale, 12.3 b p.iu. (W.S. & Co.). S Wllleston St., 1 p.m.—Furniture (E. Johnston). Lam-hton Quay. 1-30 p.m.—Furniture, etc. (Dunbar Sloane). TO-MORROW. 93 Dixon St.. 1030 a.m.—Belmont property (C. IV. Price). 19 Grant Road, 10.30 a.m. —Timber (fjilverstone). During the week ended November 3, 1122 vessels,' representing 928,197 net register tons, used the Port of London, 504 vessels (754,123 net register tons) were to and from Empire and foreign ports and 618 vessels (172,074 net register tons) were engaged in coastwise traffic. Seven vessels discharged meat cargoes in the Port of London during the week ended November 2. four from Australia and New Zealand and two from South America. Altogether 108.000 careases of lamb and mutton. 80.000 quarters of beef, quantities of pork and rabbits and approximately 52,000 packages of sundries were distributed to the London market and throughout the country or placed into cold storage.

GRAIN AND PRODUCE

Auckland Market Prices POTATOES FIRMER Dominion Special Service. Auckland, December 19. pulcekohe potatoes are slightly firmer at 3/4 to 3/6 per sugar bag. The market for fowl wheat is firm at p/- per bushel through store. . Maize is unchanged at 4/3 per bushel. . In oats, B Gartons have been raised to 3/2 a bushel. Algerians are now quoted at 4/6; and although clipped Dunns are still on list at 4/-, the quotation is really nominal, and new season s stocks will arrive at a substantially higher cost. Chaff is steady at ti per ton. The market for fowl wheat is quite firm at late rates, namely, 5/- per bushel through store. A shortage of barley will be.relieved at the end of the week, when a fresh shipment is expected from Adelaide. This will sell 3d. cheaper at 4/- per bushel for clipped grain. Wellington Prices Prices of grain and other produce current in the Wellington markets are quoted by Laery and Co., Ltd., as follow :— Australian barley, 3/6 a bushel; barleymeal. £6/7/6 a ton. Bran, £5/17/6 a ton; chaff, prime Blenheim £4/10/- a ton, prime Wairarapa £4715/- a ton; mixed fowl feed-, 4/3 a bushel; lucerne meal. 8/6 1001 b. Maize, crushed 4/10 a bushel, whole 4/3 a bushel. Oaty, Algerian 2/8 a bushel, Gartons 3/2 a bushel, ground £6/15/- a ton; peameal. £6/16/6 a ton; Prussian blue peas. 8/6 a bushel; partridge peas, 5/6 a bushel'; crushed neas, 4/3 n bushel; New Zealand wheat pollard, £5/17/6 a tqn. Wheatmeal,-£B/5/*. a ton; wheat, 4/4 to 5/- a bushel. Eggs, first grade, 1/3 per dozen; butter, farmers’ separator, 6d. to 63d. per lb. Overseas Wheat Markets By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. ' . New York, December 18. Chicago wheat futures: December, S2f cents a bushel; May, 84f cents; July, 83i cents. ,New York, cash, 95 cents. London, December 18. :■ Wheat market :'Cargoes tb-day were quiet; - Australians were steadily held. Manitobas and La Platas were obtainable at od a quarter lower. A cargo of 7200 tons of West Australian wheat ex Winton sold at 22/6 a quarter. Parcels were .mostly offered at 14d to 6d decline. Good business was done in Manitobas. Australians were quiet and La -Platas were neglected. A West Australian parcel (old) ex Djambi sold at 22- and a South Australian ex Port Darwin at 21/10J. Futures: London, December, 17/10 a quarter; February, old, 17/10; new, 17/11}; April, IS/1; June, 18/6. Liverpool, December, 4/1 a cental; March, 4/3 7-8; May, 4/5} ; July, 4/6 3-Sd.

FRUIT AND VEGETABLES Wellington Market Prices Prices of fruit, vegetables , and other .produce in the. Wellington markets are quoted by Laery- and" Co.. Ltd., George Thomas and Co., Ltd., Thompson Bros. Ltd., Townsend and Paul Ltd., D. Bowie and Co., Ltd., and W. Burbidge and, Co., as.follow.:***Apples: Fancy grade Delicious, 8/- to; 10/- a bushel case; fancy grade Sturmers, 7/- to 9/-. Cherries: Choice large, 10/- to 11/per 111 b box; others, 4/- to 7/- per 101 b box. Strawberries, choice, 7d to 9d per punnet. Gooseberries, choice, 2}d to 2Jd per lb. Passions, choice, short supply, IS/- to 20/- per box. Plums, choice, Bronze, 3/- per half-case; Cherry, 2/- to 2/6 per half-case; Wright’s Early. 2/to 2/6f per half-case; Sharpes, 4/6 to 5/per half-case. Peaches, choice, Mayflower, '6/6 to 8/- per half-case; Sneed, 4/6 to 6/- per half-case. Black currants, choice, 3/6 to 4/- per 101 b box. Red currants, choice, 3/6 to 4/- per 101 b box. Onions, ex cool store, 6/- to 7/- per crate. Cauliflowers, choice, beet, 9d to 1/- per case. Cabbage, choice. 1/6 to 2/- per case. Carrots, choice, 3d to 4d per bunch. Parsnips, choice, 4d to 5d per bunch. Tomatoes, choice, Hutt hothouse, 4d to 5d per pound; Nelson red, 0/6 to 7/6 per half-case; well-coloured, 6/6 to 7/6 per half-case; coloured, 6/to 6/6 per half-case. Marrows, choice, 5/- to 6/- per case. French -beans, choice, 2}d to 3d per: lb. Green peas, choice, 4/- to 6/-.cental bag. New potatoes, choice, 5/6 to 6/- per cwt. Cucumbers, choice, hothouse, 2/G to 4/- per dozen. Lettuce, choice, good heart. 3/- to 4/- per case. Rhubarb, ‘choice. 2/- to 5/- dozen bunches. ' \ > Eggs, fresh, first grade, lid to 1/- *a dozen. Walnuts, prime, 7}d to 10d per. lb. . - - BASE METALS MARKET Advance in Copper By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright. (Received December 19, 8.55 p/m.) London, December 18. The official London (middle) qiiotations for Monday,', as reported by The Australian Mines and Metals Association, compare as under with those previously cabletl : “ Dec. 15. Dec. IS.

tAinerican, 52.83 cents a lb. ■ . -American, 8.25 cents a lb. British Tobacco Co. Mr A. J. XVarry, chairman of the British Tobacco Co. (Australia), Ltd., m dealing at the annual meeting with the balance-sheet for the past year, drew shareholders’ attention to the item, debtors and debit balances. This item showed a decrease of £6526. he said, which represented repayments bv the subsidiary companies.. Oil the liabilities side, creditors and' credit balances had decreased by £6824. That decrease mainly represented a reduction in the provision necessary for Federal pronertv tax. and New South Wales unemployment relief tax for the current year not yet due for payme been mentioned at the last annual meeting, said Mr. Warry, that until there was a permanent improvement in the economic situation, it was difficult to se how any increased earnings by the subsidiary companies could be expected : but there were now definite signs of increased purchasiiig power by the public. With a continuance of wise legislation and reduced taxation, the companies would, he hoped, share in and benefit by the improved conditions.

4. p.c. Bonds, 1940 .... 102 0 0 102 5 0 4 p.c. ditto, 1946 .... 101 15 0 — 4 p.c. ditto. 1949 .... 100 15 0 4 p.c. ditto. 1953 .... 100 5 0 100 15 0 Rural Advance Bond — 97 0 0 34 p.c. Ins. Stk.. 1038-43 101 5 0 — 34 p.c. ditto, 1938-52 .. 101 2 6 101 10 0 4 p.c. ditto, 1940 .... 102 0 0 102 5 0 4 p.c. ditto. .1946 .... 101 10' 0 — 4 p.c.-'ditto,-' 1'949 100'15 0 —— 4 lix-.-'dltto; loss ....'100 2' 6 101 0 0 DEBENTURES. - ■ AuckrCity, 54 P.O., 11144 101 10 0 —- Chch. City. oj-p.c., 1944 101 10 0 - • —— Dunedin City, 5J p.p.. 1944 102 10 0 Wgtn. Jldrb. B3.. .54 p.c.. 1940 • 102 10 0 Wgtn. City, 4i'p.'e.. 1943 102 10 0 — Napier, Boro., 5f p.c.. 1945' - 96 0 0 Waiiganui H.B., 5} p.c.,. 1940 100 0 0 103 0 0 Ditto, 1944 ' t..' 103 0 0 Auek.-Harb. Bd.,- 1940 — 102 10 0 Wellington Gas Co. .. 102 0 0 — Wgtn. Racing Club .. 97 10 0 I. 1 1 Amid. Brick and .Pipe, . Wellington, ...- — 93 0 0 Kelburn Tramway .. 102 0 0 BANKS. . Australasia.. 11 15 0 Comrcl. of Aust„ ord. . 0 17 6 ——■ Comrcl. Bankgi-Co., Sydney 17 4 o 17 10 0 Eng., Scot, and Aust.',..’ 5 10 0 5 13 0 National of N.Z — •4 2 d National of Australasia, £10 paid’ ........— 13 12 0 Ditto, £5 paid ..... 6.6 0 , 6 10 0 New Zealand 2 7 0 —— Union of Aust - ML 0 FINANCIAL. 10'15 Dalgety and Co — 0 Goliisbrough Mort. & Co. 1 13 6 National’Mortgage, “B" 1 10 0 N.Z. Guar. Corp., ord., cum rights 0 8 2. ■ —— —— N.Z. Invest., Mort, and Deposit 0 4 6 N.Z. LoAn and Merc., ord. stock ........ 58 15 0 Wgtn. Invest., T. & A. — 0 8 0 Wgtn. Trust, Loan ... 4 3 0 — GAS. Auckland 1 3 S Ditto, contrib 0 17 5 —— Wellington,; ord — 1 15 0 J INSURANCE. National of N.Z. - 0 18 3 0 IS 9 New Zealand • 2 16 9 —— Queensland .......... 3.20 — South British .. . —- 3 18 .0 MEAT. Gear Meat, cum rights 1 12 0 N.Z. Refrfg., £1 pd. .. 0 11) 9 1 0 3 Ditto, 10/-. paid .... 0 9 6 0 9 8 TRANSPORT. Union Steam, pref. ... 1 4 0 — WOOLLEN. 5 14 Wellington, ord.- — 0 Ditto, pref 5 9 0 5 15 0 J /.COAL. Westport-Stockton, pref. 0 2 3 ' —■ . timber. Taupo Totara <,>’••••• 0 2 11 — BREWERIES. Carlton 2 2 6 — N.Z. Breweries ........ 116 9 1 17 3 Tooth and Co .’ — 2 3 0 MISCELLANEOUS. British Tobacco, Aust. . — •1 17 9 Colonial Sugar 63 0 0 Donaghys Rope & Twine 2 7 0 Electrolytic Zinc, ord. 1 6-0 —- Ditto, 8 p.c. pt. pref. 1 .13 6 - — Howard Smith, ord. .. 0 12 6 N.Z. Farmers' Fertiliser 0 18 .6 0 19 3 N.Z. Paper Mills 18 3 ■ ■ Sharland and Co., pref, 1, 4 0 Wilsons Cemeh,t 1 6 0 Woolworths,, n.Z.j pref. — -.- 1 16 3 Dominion , Fertiliser. 0 16 6 0 17 9 OIL. Moturoa/ . ord. ’ — • 0 3 6 mining. Alexander,’fully paid .. 0 16 0 Ditto, contrib t .... — 0 16 0 Bell Hooper — 0 1 0 Ditto, .fully .paid ... — ’ 0 1 1 Bell Kilgotir — 0 1 Central Hliotover 0 0 9 Consol. Goldfields .... — 0 16 0 Golden Point ....... 0 0 21 King Solomon 1 .0 3 1 0 3 6 Mount Lyell +1 2 4 Waihi 1 8 9 1 10 0 Waihi Grand- Junction 0 4 0 ♦Cum dividend. tEx dividend. Unofficial List : Buyers. Sellers. £ s d £ 8 d Claude Neou Lights, ord .• 2 G 0 National Tobacco .... 3 5 0 Denhard Bakeries, pref. — 1 1 0 Snowy River — 0 0 9 Dominion Rubber .... — 0 17 0 Wgtn. Perm. Building Society, £10 “A” shares — 10 0 0 N.Z. Invest. Development Corporation .. — .0 0 6

Sale Price. £ s d on.investment. £ s d Govt. Bonds, 4 p.e., 1955 100 7 C 3 19 6 Rural Advance Bonds 90 0 0 5 8 4 Nat. Bank AuSt/asia. £5 paid 6 7 6 3 18 o Bank of N.Z., long term, odd lot* .... 1 11 6 4 15 3 N.Z. Refrig., contr. .. 0 9 7 Ditto 0 9 7 Taupo Totara Timber 0 3 0 Farmers’ Fertiliser . 0 19 0 5 5 3 Waihi 19 0 0 17 11 •Late sale Monday. AUCKLAND. £ s d £ S (J Insc. Stock, 3j p.e., 1938-0! (2) 101 5 0 3 9 1 Rural Advances Bonds 96 5 0 i) 7 9 Amalg. Brick (Auck)., 7$ p.e., 1944 90 0 0 8 19 4 Comm. Bank of Aust., 8 19 0 4 9 4 Bank of N.Z 2 7 6 4 14 8 Ditto 2 7 7 4 14 6 Ditto, long term .. 1 11 6 4 15 3 N.Z. Insurance 2 17 0 3 10 2 Queensland Insur. .. 3 3 6 3 3 0 South British Ins. . 3 17 0 3 9 o Standard Insurance . 3 0 9 4 2 3 Farmers' Auction., B pref. (2) 0 19 3 6 4 8 Traders' Finance 0 19 •— Colonial Sugar .... 63 0 0 3 19 4 Ditto 63 10 0 3 18 9 Consol. Brick and Pipe 0 5 6 Dunlop Rubber .... 0 19 11 4 0 4 Farmers’ Trading, B pref 0 10 0 16 9 N.Z. Refrig., cont. ... 0 9 7 —— Gillespie's Beach .... 0 1 10 —— 0 3 3 0 8 0 Waibl 18 7 7 0 0 Ditto 10 0 6 17 11 Unofficial List— Invest., Exec. Trust, 2nd B debs 89 0 0 — CHRISTCHURCH. £ s d £ s d Comm. Bank of Aust. . 0 17 7 2 16 10 Bank of N.S.W. . . ... 32 5 0 ■j 2 <1 N.Z. Refrig., paid ... . ■ 0 19 10 • <• — . Ditto, contr. (2) .. . 0 9 6 Ditto, contrib. (3) . . O 9 S — N.Z. Breweries .1 17 1 2 15 6 Amalg. Wireless, contr .116 4 17 8 Dunlop Rubber (4) ... 0 19 10 4 0 8 Broken Hill Propy, . . 2 7 6 ii 4 2 2 7 7 4 4 0 .278 4 3 11 Electro Zinc, ord. ... . 1 6 *6 Afj'earoa . 0 0 10 Bell Hooper, 9d pd. (2) 0 0 104 King Solomon (2) :.. ■ • . 0 -.3 14 — Maerewhenua, 1/- paid 0 0 94 —• Okarito (2) ...08 0 — Ditto • . 0 8 3 - - - Henry Jones Co-op.. . . 1 14 6 3 12 5 Sales reported— N.Z. Retrig., . paid ... . 0 19 11 — Ditto 1 0 0 DUNEDIN. £ s d £ s d Farmers’ Fertiliser . 0 18 9 5 .6 8 Kjng Solomon .. . 0 3. 2$ —— Ditto (2) . 0 3 2 4 •— Okarito ............ . 0 8 2

Dec. 18. Dec. 16. Par. X. York, dol. to £ 5.105 5.125 4.866 Montreal. dol. to £ — 5.09 4.866 Paris, ft. to £ 83.25 S3 13-32 124.21 Brussels, bel. to £ 23.45 •23.435 35.00 Geneva, fr. to £ 16.SG 16.895 25.225 Amst’dam, fl. to £ 8.11 8.13 12.107 Milan, lire to £ 621-16 62 3-16 ."2.46 Berlin, inks, to £ 13.66 13.695 20.43 St'JioIm, knr. to £ 19.395 10.39 18.150 C’hagen, knr. to £ 22.40 22.40 18.150 Oslo, . knr. to £ 19.90 19.90 18.159 Vienna, schgs. to £ 29.50 29.50 34.595 Prague, knr. to £ 110 110 164.25 iTel’fors, mks. to £ 226.50 226.50 193.23 Madrid, pes. to £ 39.50 40 ' °5 Lisbon, esc. to £ 109.875 109.S75 ho” Athens, draeli. to £ 580 5S0 375 Belgrade', din. -to £■ 240 . —— • .276.31 Bucharest, lei to £ 550 813.60 Warsaw, zloty to £ «— — 43.38 Bio de J„ p. to mil. t4 1-8-74 1-8 5.S99 B. Aires, p. to peso f35 7-8 735} 735 3-8 47.62 M. Video, p. to peso 7354 51 Calcutta, p. to rup. 18 3-64 IS 3-64 18 Shanghai, p. to dol. 15 5-8 15 5-8 IT.-Kong, p. to dol. 17 3-16 17 3-16 — Y’hama. p. to yon 14 15-32 14 15-32 24.582 Batavia, fl. to £ 8.00 8.08 tSellcrs. official. 12.107

Conner — Standard. Standard, •Eleetrolyti Wire bars Lead — Forward spot ... forward tc Per ton £ s d 31 13 11 311+ 41 3+0 0 > 35 0 0 35 0 0 Per ton. £ s d 32 1G 104 32 IS U 35 10 0 36 10 0 3G 10 0 11 10 0 11 10 0 11 15 0 11 16 3 Spelter— 1+ 17 6 1+ IS 0 Forward Tin— 15 0 0 15 3 9 228 6 3 22$ 11 3 Forward 228 (J 22$ 11 3 Silver Standard, Fine .... per oz. . IS 3-llld 20 3-10d 1S5-Sd 20 l-8d