COMMERCIAL.

Evening Star, Issue 14574, 24 May 1911, Page 6

COMMERCIAL.

THE MARKETS. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. LONDON. May 23. (Received May 24. at 9.35 a.m.) Wheat : An Australian cargo sold at 55a 6d. Copper : Spot. £54 16a 3d : three months, £55 7a 6d : electrolytic, £56 15a. Tin : Forward, £lB9 15a. SUEZ CANAL RATES. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. PARIS, May 23. (Received May 24. at 10.40 a.m.) The Suez Canal Company are reducing dues from January 1. 1912, from 1\ (rams to francs a ton. (i.c., sd). WRIGHT, STEPHENSON, AND CO. The fifth annual meeting of the above company was held at the registered othce, High street, on .Monday, and was well attended by shareholders. The balancesheet showed the net profit for the year ended March 31 hist to he £25,437 Is 4cl. which, added to the amount brought forward from the previous year, gave a total of £54.604 16s 3d to be disposed of. It was decided to pay the usual dividends of 6 per cent, per annum upon the ordinary ami 5i per cent, on the preference shares, put £5,000 to reserve (which will then stand at £20,000), and carry forward £11.051 5e 3d to the succeeding year. DEAR APPLES. Messrs A. Moritzson write as follows:—“We noticed some time ago a telegraphic despatch from Napier stating that the Napier apples shipped to London had arrived in a rollon condition. We think the action of the Government is responsible for dear apples in New Zealand. Everybody knows that not sufficient apples are grown in New Zealand to supply the demand for the twelve months. In fact, New Zealand is not able to supply its own demand for four months. In the face of this state of affairs the New Zealand Government guarantee the Nelson and other shippers Id a lb on shipments to London or Hamburg in the event of a loss by the shipper. Under this arrangement the Nelson and Hawke’s Ray growers have shipped, with the result that apples have been scarce hero in the South,, and for several months past our firm have been compelled to import apples from Tasmania and Victoria. The charges on these imported apples are (is per case. This includes duty, freight, commission, harbor does, and cartage. Therefore, Australian apples of good quality cannot he sold here for less than from 10s to 11s 6d a case to get the Australian shippers out without a loss. We have even a struggle to get apples at this price from Australia, owing to the heavy charges imposed, the principal offender being the Government in charging Id per lb duty, which is 3s 4d for a bushel case. Tasmania is shipping very heavily even - week from 25,000 to 30,000 eases to Sydney, where thoro is a population of nearly threequarters of a million. The charges all told for the Tasmanian shipper to send to Sydney are Is 3d a case, as against our 65.”