COMMERCIAL & FINANCIAL. [PRESS ASSOCIATION.] (Received October 26,10.50 p.m.) LONDON, 26th October.

Evening Post, Volume LX, Issue 102, 27 October 1900, Page 4

COMMERCIAL & FINANCIAL. [PRESS ASSOCIATION.] (Received October 26, 10.50 p.m.) LONDON, 26th October.

BANK OF ENGLAND BIfITUBNS. The Bank of England roturn issnod for the woek ending Wednesday, 17th Ootober, is as under ;—; —

♦Interest payublo iv May and Noveiwbor. . flntorest payable in January and July. Jlntorebt payable in April and October. THE MONEY MARKET. Tho market rate of discount for best three months' bills is £ lower, at 3f per cent. Tjje Bank of England rate is 4 per cent., as against 3 per cent, on tho 18th July, 3£ per cent, on the 14th Jane, and 4 per cent, on tho 23rd May. COLONIAL AND OTHER PRODUCE.' Wheat. — The market i« inactive, and prices at Mark-lane liavo declined about 6d per quarter on the week. Cargoes are dull, Victorian off-coast are held for 31s 9d, and September and October shipment at 31s per quarter o.i.f. Butter. — The market is quiet, and there is a rather less demand. Colonial, unchanged, at 110s to 112s, for choicest. Danish is in strong 1 , demand at 1245, as against 120s last ' week. Bradford Tops —The market is lifeloss. Common sixties, Jd lower, at I7£d per lb; super sixties, Jd lowor, at IB|d per lb. Wool. — At the sales there was better competition, with prices firm at lato rates. The following clipß havo been sold :— " Mendip Hills," i>id; " Paporangi," 9£d. THE PRICES OF MISTALS. Copper, nominal. -Spot, 5s higher, at j672 por ton ; three months', 22s 6d higher, at .£72 7s 6d per ton. Tin. is active— Spot, 20s lower, at 10s j per ton ; three months', not quoted. Pig iron — Glasgow warrants, No. 1, cash, unchanged, at 66a Cd per tun f .o.b. in Clyde, Lead, 2s 6d lower, at .£l7 los per ton. Bar silver is quoted at 2s 5 15-16 d per oz, a fall of M6d. 26th October. The balanco-sheet of Dalgoty and Co., Limited, shows a profit of £116,062. Payment of a dividend of 8 per cent, is recommended by tho directors, leaving £36,062 to carry iorward. YESTERDAY'S WOOL AND SKIN SALES. The New Zoaland Loan and Mercantile Agency Company (Limited) "reports on yesterday's Bales as follows — We brought forward a catalogue of about 1000 skins and 20 bales and bags wool. Prices wore on a par with those ruling' at previous sales. We quoto: — Sheopskins — Merino and halfbred, none offered ; crossbred, prime full-woollod, 4id to 4£d ; medium to good coarse crossbred, 3£d to 4d; broken and inferior, lid to 3d per lb. Wool—; Crutohings, ljjd to 3d per lb ; stragglers' fleece, 3^d to 4£d per lb; pieces, l£d to 3d per lb. < * Messrs. Murray, Roberts and Co. ro-porb:-*—AYo offered 3000 sheepskins and 10 bales wool. There was a good demand for skins, but prices showed no improvemont on tho lowor range of values established at tho previous sale. Quotations are: — Skins — Fine crossbreds, 4£d to 4ttl per lb ; coarse coarsebreds, 4£d to 4£d per lb; dead and hoggets, 3a to 4d per lb; damage and inferior, 2d to 2£d per lb. Wool — Stragglers' fleece. 3id to 4£d per lb ; good dead wool, 4£d to 5d por lb ; mixed wool, 3d to 3£d per lb. The date of th,e next sale is Bth November, instead of tho 9th, aowing to the latter being a publio holiday. Messrs. Levin and Co. report: — We offerod 60 boles «wool and 1600 Bkins. The wool was chiefly orutching* of a superior class, and realised high prices according to present market conditions, 15 bales bringing 4£d, five bales 4d, and 11 bales 32d. For ordinary coarse and medium crutchings, however, there was only a weak demand. For skins the bidding was irr.egulav, and many linos showed a fall of a farthing. Wo quote:— Skins— Good crossbred, 4id to 4£d per lb ; medium crossbred, 33d to 4d per lb ; dead crossbred, 3d to 3Jd per lb; merinos, 4d to 43d per lb; crutchings, medium, 2id to 3d ; Iqyi, l£d to 2d. PALMERSTON STOCK SALES. Messrs. Abraham and Williams ~ report concerning their Palmerston salo of Thursday:—More than; the advortised entry camo forward. had a "full yarding of cattle, over 700 being brought under tho hammov. The oattlo right through were of good quailty and buyers being present for all classos competition was keen, and a successful «alo was the result, very few leaving tho yards unsold: — 3^-yr bullocks, £6; 2i and 3-yr steers, £5 4s to £5 9s; 2-yr steers, £3 17s, £3 18a, and £4 ; 18-mo steers, £3 3s; yearling steers, £2 13s 6d to £2 ss; mixed yearlings, £2 to £2 7s; woantjru, 34», 36s 6d, and 37s 6d; small weaners, 245, 275, and 295; fat cows, £5 Us to £6 ; store cows, £3 Us, £3 13s, £3 14a, £3 16s, and £4 2a ; empty hoifers, £3 4s to £3 7s 6d; heifers in calf, £3 10s to £3 13s; springing heifars, £4 13a 6d to *£5 Is ; springing cows, £5 to £6 ; 18-mo bulls, £2 to £3 Is; nged bulls, £1 2s ,to £3 ; wethers 15e to 15s 3d ; ewes and lambs, 16s 2d, 16s 6d, and 17s ; . hoggets, 11s 9d, 12s sd, and 13s ; store ewes, 10s 2d ; weaner pigs, 4a 6d. The Now Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company (Limited) reports on Thursday's Palmorston North sale:— We had a fair yarding ot cattle, but only a few lines of sheep (Sam© forward. There was a large attendance, and bidding was vory brisk, all classes selling well, a good line of shorn four and six-tooth wethers, tho first pen of the season, realising 13s 6cl. Young cattle were in good demand, and sold readily at advanced prices. Wo quote : —Sheep, shorn, four and six tooth wethers, 13b 6d ; fat ewes, 14s : hoggots, 13s. Cattle— Weaners, 20s to 28e; yearlings and 18 months, £2 Is 6d to £3 3s ; 2-yoar steers, £3 lla to £4 Is ; 3-year atoers, £5 sfe ; springing cows, £5 to £5 10s ; empty hoifers, £4 ss ; ' milch cows, £3 ss, £3 10s, to £5 ; cows with calf at fqot, £5 17s 6d; fab cows, £6; fat bullocks, £6 13s to £7 3s. Pigs— Weanere, 4s 3d to 8s; stores, 8s 6d to 10s 3d. The Customs ' dnties oolleoted at the Port of Wellington for the week ending to-day amounted to £10,616 2b Bd, Beer, .£336 2s 6a. i

Issue Department. v Not» issue £19,582,000 Got. debt £11,015,000 Other saoiu'ities ... 6,700,000 Gold ... 81,807,000 £•19,58^,000 JW9,58J,000 Bankino Dkpautment. rr'pnefc'ss' Got. secuvinipitftl... £14,553,000 tioa ... £20,191,000 Puliho do- Other se- . lws.its ... 8,048,000 ctu'iliss... 25,G08,000 OEher cle- Notes ... 20,10i,00Q posits ... 40,979,000 Coin ... 1,806,000 Kesfc, 7-day and other bills .... 4,127,000 £67,707,000 £67,707,000 The leadinp- items of tho Bank of England return afford tbo following ooruparisou :—: — Tl>is wook. LuaLweok. Last year. £ £ £ Bullion ...31,807,000 81,708,000 31,993,000 Nosorvo... 21,908,000 21,479,000 2^,527,000 Noto cir'n 29,450.000 29,770,000 28,040,000 Deposits 49,027,000 49,558,000 50,545,000 Proportion reserve to liabilities 43-89 4320 44*43 GOVERNMENT SEOUEITIES. The following are the latest quotations foi Government securities : —

Piige. compared with last week. !}% Imperial Consols i % New South Wales lk% Now South Wales ! % Now South Wales i % Victorian \^% Victorian ! % Victorlau >\% South Australian I % South Australian : % Queensland \\% Queensland ... k % flow Zealand* ... ij% Now Zealaudt ... I % New Zealimdj ... l]% West Australian <h % Tnsmanian i ... £ s, d. 98 16 0 110 0 0 103 15 0 100 0 0 109 10 0 103 10 0 2/6 lower Unchanged Unchanged Unclmneed 10/- higiier 10/- higher 20/- higher Unchanged Unchanged 5/- higher 5/- higher 15/- higher 10/- highor 15/- higher Unchanged 107 0 0 95 0 0 109 0 0 103 5 0 112 0 0 105 15 0 97 10 0 103 0 0 103 0 0