COMMERCIAL & FINANCIAL.

Evening Post, Volume LXVIII, Issue 47, 24 August 1904, Page 4

COMMERCIAL & FINANCIAL.

» Evening Post Offico, Wodnoeday. THK MONEY MAHKIST. Tho London money markot » again oasing, probably because of tho excellent showing of the Bank of llngiand weokiy baianco-shoot Tho reserve of potes ana com has gono up from £24,40b,000 to £25,632,000, due to the influx of gold, which show* an inoreaso lor tho week of ±!601.0u0, and to tho docroa«o of £715,000 ' in tho deposits, and to a shrinkage of I £411,000 in the noto circulation. The proportion of reserve to liabilities under the circumstances shows an incroaßO of ovor 3 per oont., and at 54.70 por cent, exhibits exceptional ttrongth. With such a favourablo showing thoro nood bo no approhonnioii of any hardening of tho ratos just at presont. When tho open markot discount rato reached 6 per oont. a. fortnight ago thero muflt have been some spooiai cauno, junt an thoro was in tho second week in June, and right along to. July. Thn financial difficulties of a foreign concern engagod in the timber trade caused the di«-tiM-banco then, but the diiliculties wcro arranged. The utock market 'exhibits an improvement so far as Imperial Consols are concornod. There was a serious drop in tho value of this gilt-edged security, duo partly to tho liquidation of a weak "bull tu count, but principally to the trouble with Russiiw over tho contraband question and tho seizure of British vessels. Throo weeks ago Consols were down to £87 ss, and they are now quoted nt £88 10s, whilo ihe highest point renchod during tho post six wooki was £89 12s 6ci ; thero is thus still room for improvement. Colonial socuritiM, instead of moving up in sympathy with Impor'ii Consuls, have declinoa in valuo, and the general tqndonoy is one of weakness. The' colonies have large amount* maturing during the next two or three years, while the fresh loan domauila must al*o be large. It 11 somu satisfaction to know that Now Zealand stocks show the )e«st disturbance ol all the colonial denominations. Notwithstanding the comparatively dull times in monetary affair* in tiroat Britain, tho application* tor oapitiO on th« London markot during the Ami half of tho yoar woro £70,559,300, notwithstanding that not, ono of the Au«trs.li>sian color.ios appeared ns a borrowor. Tito toUl included British Govornment loans £10,155,000, colonial Government loans £11,968,500, and foreign Government loans £13,660,300; British Municipal and County lo»n/i £6,095,900. Only £145,800 was invested in Australasian ni'ning companies cut of » tot»l of £1,953,600. Considering that the market is still very much congested the amount of tho capital application* w&o relatively largo. Nearly iUI the loan* cntrr higher rates^ of intpreat than thoeo ruling last yoar, and this perhaps rr»« tho chief attraction to investors and underwriters. Locally tho position romtuns unaltered. Money in in full supply to meet all legitimate demands, but n curb will be placed upon speculation. Tho active period of bank advances will begin next month, when tho domestic produoo finds its w«y to tho seaboard for shipment, WOOL. The next teriet of London sales is about four wooks otf , and it is ua yet too oarly to judge of the -prospect*. The Bradford Top market has beon drooping recently, crossbred* in particular being quiet, but fortunately value* show no material altora- | tion. Tho position, however, it one of un- j certainty, but this at least teems probable, that values will not recede to any extent. 801110 lig_ht i« thrown on the position by John Bridge and Co., of Sydney, who say in thoir recently issued wool review: — ''it is a miitako to suppose that the consideration of supply is all important. To a certain point it i* ihe great controlling factor, and to that extent its importance is guaranteed by the ' certainty that for all time, doaptte the employment of machinery capable of producing from coarse woole » fabrio to look Almost the counterf>art of merino wool, the fine wool mnnuaeture will still look tho more attractive, and prove in fcke aotual wear moro durable than the crombred production, 'ihe point beyond which the question of supply Cannot favourably afreet the course of merino value* is re*ohed when manufacturers find that prices have reached & lovel at which thoy cannot buy with any hopo of produomg an article at a popular price. It cannot be oxpeofced that the supply of merino wool for 1904-5 will greatly exceed the production of 1903-4, wheroas everything points to a falling off in the crossbred clips of both New Zealand and tbo Argentine. Whilo theu wo hold the boliof that the spending power of the m**ses must preclude any considerable advanco in the values of merino wool, we are of opinion, viewing tho mattor from all sidos nul in the light of suoh reliable information m we have recoivod, that the markot throughout tha coming season will remain $rm at about the present level of values." The Australasian wool exports for July. 1904, as compiled by Messrs. Dalgoty' and Co. (Limited), compared with the corresponding month of last year show as under:— •

Ther* is a decrease of 12,099 balon, to which all th» colonies, except QaeomUn'd, contribute. Queensland ihotve an inoroteo of 1144 b*l«i. Thes* figures do not indicate much, for it tttma likoly that in Australia much of th« new clip is being held for tho local »»l»i shortly to begin. Such wool is still in first hands, and tho outward movement will not bejrin until ths staple hat been sold to the roprosantativoi of manufacturers. DAIRY PRODUCE. Colonial butters are finding a readier lalo in I/ondon. Price* havo improved* considerably during the past few weeks, and as compared with a- year ago thero in »n improvement of about 3i per owl. Thn butter that is now being marketed is cold storage butter bought by speculators earlier in the teuon at from 82a to 88«. Tho question is, does this tale of stored butter .givo » fair and reliable indication of the 'prospects for tho sfMon? It must be re{numbered that just now th«re Is a natural falling off in supplies from the Continent and Canada, »nd the export season from tha colonies lias scmraely begun. London ia nuffering from the between season loaroity, and it seems further that thero is not tho samo volume of stored but tor as was the oase Isurt year. At this time in 1903 .tha colonies were shipping large quantities ex ootd store, and tkore was also «• big supply in London Our own potation it shown by the Agricultural Products Export LenJot, according to which last month this colony exported 1483cwt butter valued at £6694. against 50150wt valued at £22,512 is July oi tat yoar.

Looking nt tho mutter from ovory 6 1 midpoint, It aeoim (air to asaiima that tho prnnunt quotMtionn fur Btoied buttor nlFord no critorion of tho nimkot prospecln. Furthennoro, T«oiuloi» advices do not give room for outm-tainiug Tory optimistic opinions. Mossrs. Woddol and Co., in their annual review, whilo hoarlily rommonding the quality of Now Zealand liuttor, do not give any hopo ot improvement iv iwioe* — "With general triulo baa and many porsons unemployed, next kohdon'a prices aro not likmy to impiovo on tho*o of last season." Last year Wcddcl's roview prognontiouted a declino, which was rnoro than realisod, and thoro in no reason to doubt thair forucusls for the curronl lesson. Our dairymon havo coiurcoly re»li^rd that tho conditions havo miUorially liltored during tho past two seasons. Holli Außtralia and the Argentine are now hoavy exporters, and for the current aoa»on it is expectod that supplies from thi>no souroos will ohow expansion. An rogardci Australia, tha mattor is beyond doubt, and from Viotoria and Now South Wales shipments have already gono forward. From the former colony 55 tons of butler worn nhippod during the first fortnight of this month, and supplies are now coming In freely. Of oourso, Now Zealand butter has the advantngo of quality, und that ii an important advantage! which wo must ©ndeavour to maintain. At tho rahio time it cannot be denied that both Aiißtral^i and the Argentine can work up quality to ns high a etandnrd as our own. It comes to this, that from Now Zealand, .Australia, and the Argantino increased 1 Bhipmonts of butter will bo poured into fhr United Kingdom during the next four of fivo months, and tho supply may bo in excess of the demand bconime of tho •lackncM of goneral trada. If, howevor, vahios decline, aa scam* not unlikely, thoro will bo an inarea«o in consumption, which would bring relief. Tho question is not what- the middlemen can give, but what tho 'consumers aro prepared to pay in the present dullness of tfftdo. Tho buttermon of Taranaki are timorous, and fire acting with extreme caution. No businoce has been transacted, und such meetings ac have been called have been adjournod or portponod. Tho batis of offers appears to bo about BAd to BJd f.o.b. for the first two months, but the factory director* are not reßdy to olo«e, hoping to ace an improvement. It will be two or three weeks before the trado will have rcaohed a decided situation. WHEAT. The earlier pessimistic forecasts of the outturn of wheat are being dissipated by tho later official pronouncement*. Tho Manitoban crop is expectod to turn o\it satisfactorily, and the reports of damago by rust aro said to be quite untruo From Russia- also more oncouraging reports aro rocoived, and nftor allowing for nil this thero is still ground for tho bolicf that tho whent outlook is woroo tliHii it w«s * year ago. Th«< excitement in the United 1 Stntea may bo tot aside, for it is moro tha outoomo of gambling than of legitimate business. Tho Amerioan whent crop is estimated at 530,000,000 bushels, which would leave about 110,000,000 bunliels for export, as against 120,000,000 bushels la«t yoar. The difference is trifling ovon if we admit that tho crop estimate if correct. Pessimistic ' forecasts would suit tho "bull" operators, and as thnro appears to be numorous syndicates bulling tho market there should bo no look of adverso forooMts. However, wheat has improved in value i Aurtralian shipments are now quoted at 335, whilo about a couplo of months ago sales were roported at 28s ; there ie thus an advance of 5s per quarter, equal to 74d per bushel. Tlie price to-day is equal to 4b lid per bmiiel c.i.f.,,.and that should prove highly ronninoralivo to shippers. Lntor reports may, if thoy prove faroura-ble, steady tho market ; at all ©T»nt« it is snfo-r to d'"i>eounl the highlycoloured roportj which havo tlinir origin in tho wheat-pits of tho United States.

Viotori* N.S. Wo1«i 8. Au«tr<tlia QuooMUnd New Zealand 1904. Bilos. ... 1,632 ... 7,176 19 ... 2,227 ... 10,342 21,396 1903. Balos. 3,144 14,846 2,096 1,083 13,226 34,395