COMMERCIAL.

Evening Star, Issue 14163, 13 September 1909, Page 6

COMMERCIAL.

THE MARKETS. GENERAL IMPROVEMENT IN MUTTON. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. LONDON, September 12. (Received September 13, at 9.10 ajn.) There is a general improvement in the demand for mutton. Stocks are short ajid firmly held. Sheep—Canterbury, light and medium 3Jd, heavy 3d; Southland, 3£d ; North Island, 3d; best brands, 3gd._ Lambs—Canterbury, light 3-§d, medium and heavy 3gd; Southland, 3£d; North Island, 3 l-16d: selected, Beef, fores 2|d, hinds 3§d. Australian— Sheep, heavy light 2£d ; lambs, none offering; beef, fores 2§d, hinds3id. Raver Plate—Sheep, heavy 2£d, light 3d; beef, fores hinds 3 6-16 d; lambs, 2£d. Lead : The imports are 16,553 tons; Australian, 2,460 tons; export*, 4,082 tone.

Copper : Spot, £SB 15s; three months, £59 2s 6d; electrolytic, £6O. Tin : Spot, £136 17s 6d ; three months, £l3B 2s 6d.

Silver, 23fd per oz

COAL DISCOVERY IN VICTORIA,

His Majesty's Trade Commissioner for Australia (Mr C. Hamilton Wiekes) reports that large brown coal deposits have been found to exist at Morweil. about eighty miles east of Melbourne. The coal is exposed on hillskles, and can be worked very cheaply by the open-cut system of mining. It has been bored to a depth of I,oooft, of which 800 ft is brown coal of the best quality. The overburden of clay varies in thickness from 20ft to 130 ft, and the basin is supposed to cover 360 square miles of country. An English electrical engineer has reported to the Victorian Government that brown coal could be mined at Morweil at a cost of 2s a ton. Morweil brown co;d is said to contain thirty-four gallons of crude oil per ton : it can be used to make producer gas (10,000 ft per ton) and carbide of calcium. Fire bricks made at Morweil from the clay overlying the brown coal sell at 60s a thousand. Morweil brown coal is said to contain not more than 17 per cent, of sulphur. GRAIN AND PRODUCE REPORTS. Messrs Donald Reid and Co. report : We held our weekly auction sale of grain and produce at our stores today. The attendance of buyers was not so large as usual. Competition for most linos on offer was not brisk, and only a. portion of the catalogue was quitted at auction. Values ruled as under :

Oats.—The market shows no change. Shippers are not' operating freely, awl their requirements are being supplied chiefly ex store. The quantity of .oats offering on the spot is now very limited, and anything like large orders would readily absorb present stocks. We quote : Prime milling Cartons, f ls 7.', d to Is 8d ; spaiTowbills,ls 7d to Is 8d ;*good to best feed. Is fxl to Is 7d ; inferior to medium, Is 4d to Is per bushel (sacks extra). Wheat.—No business of any importance, is passing. In milling lines 6ales are confined to small quantities of prime wheat, but for fowl wheat there has been food demand, and stocks are now reduced. We quote : Prime milling. 4s 4<l to 4s 6d; medium to good. 4s "id to 4s 3d ; best fowl wheat, 3s lOd to 3s lid ; medium. 3s 4d to 3s 9d ; broken and damaged, 2s 6d to 3s 3d per bushel (sacks extra). Potatoes.—The demand has slackened considerably, and only choice lot have any attention from shippers. Consignments have come forward freely, and in view of the quantity offering prices have suffered to some extent. Medium and inferior lots are difficult to place. We quote : Best Up-to-Dates, £3 to £3 5s ; medium to good, £2 5s to £2 15s; inferior, £1 10s to £2 per ton (sacks included). Chaff.—Prime oaten sheaf is in request with local buyers, but other sorts are without much demand. W r e quote :• Best oaten sheaf, £2 12s Gd to £2 17s 6d; medium to good, £2 to £2 10s ; light and discolored, £1 10s to £1 17s od per ton (bags extra). Straw.—We quote : Oaten, 25s to 27s 6d ; whey ten. 25s per ton (presed).

Messrs_Dalgetv and Co. report, as follows :-—Wo held our weekly auction sale of grain and produce at our stores to-day. when we offered a large catalogue to a fair attendance of buyers We cleared our catalogue at prices as under: Oate.—During the last week there has been very little business doing, a.nd prices have a decided easier tendency. We quote : Ptime milling Gallons. Is 7£d to Is 8d ; sparrowbills, Is 7d to ]s 8d ; good to best feed. Is sjd to Is 7d ; inferior to medium, Is 4d to Is 5d per bushel (sacks extra). Wheat.—The market remains at a, i>tandEtill, and with no business passing quotations are nominal : Piime milling, 4s 4d to 4s 6d ; medium to good. 4s 2d to 4s 3d ; be-st whole fowl wheat, 3s lOd to 3s lid ; inferior and smutted, 2s 6d to 5s 4d per bushel (sacks extra). Potatoes.—Growers who have been holding for Large prices are now inclined to rush their potatoes on to the market, and consequently prices show a considerable decline, as there is only the local demand to supply. Any but ireshly-picked prime samples aie hard to dispose of. We quote : Extra prime. £3 to £5 ss; medium to good, £2 to £2 10s. Chaff.—Heavy, bright, well-cut oaten sheaf meets with ready side at Late quotations, but medium and inferior is not so much in request, the market being over supplied with this quality. Boot oaten sheaf, £2 12s 6d to £2 17s 6d ; medium lo good, £2 5s to £2 10s; inferior and discolored, 35s to 40s.

Straw.—We quote : Oaten. 25s to 27s 6d per ton ; wheaten, 25s pressed (ex truck).

LONDON AND COUNTY AND LONDON AND WESTMINSTER. DEPOSITS, £71,000,000. The Boards of the London and Westminster and the London and County Banks recently arrived at a provisional agreement, .subject to the sanction of their shareholders, for the amalgamation of the two institutions on the following basis: The name of the amalgamated bank will be Loudon, County, and Westminster Bank, Limited. The subscribed capital will be £14,000,000. £3,500,000 paid up, in 700,000 shares of £2O each, £5 paid, of which each present holder of one £BO share, £2O paid, in the London and County Bank will hold four shares, and each present holder of one £IOO share, £2O paid, in the London and Westminster Bank will hold two and oneseventh shares of £2O, with £5 paid. Tbis projiortion represents the present relative market values of the shares of the two banks.

According to the latest returns, the current and deposit accounts of the London and Westminster amount to' £26,660,000, and those of the London and County to £44.641.000. thus making combined deposits exceeding £71.000,000. It is stated that the reserve of the amalgamated undertaking will amount to about £4,250,000.

The Boards of the two banks will be amalgamated, and the joint managers of the, London and Westminster will be associated with the head office manager and country manager of the London and Comity. Having given their closest consideration to the matter, the directors consider that the arrangement will be of great advantage to both banks, and they stronglv recomniend it to their shareholders. The London and Westminster was establishedin 1834, and the London and County in 1856. both being registered under the Limited Liability Arts of 1880. By the amalgamation the London Countv' and Westminster Bank will become the "second largest concern in Great Britain, the lead being taken at present by Lloyd's Bank, which has - deposits ' amounting to £75,500,000. The third place is occupied by the London City and Midland, with deposits of £68,000,000. and next in order comes the National Provincial, with deposits of £58.600.000.