COMMERCIAL.

Feilding Star, Volume III, Issue 762, 24 December 1908, Page 1

COMMERCIAL.

NOTES FROM THE CITY. The successful! underwriting of thi Auckland Harbour Board's quarter o a railion loan vi London at 101 am 5 4J per cent, interest, with, a cur rency of 20 years, cannot be regardec r as other than satisfactory, showing once again the confidence which Bri B tish investors have in really high-clas , colonial securities. Mr Hamer, th< * Board's engineer, who is still in London, was but waiting the underwrit r ing of the loan before purchasing electrical equipment for the new wharves and modern cargo-hauling plani j generally, in addition to "other material! connected with the great har--5 bour scheme? TBtere is pfen% of mouoy at Home, and.- that at a oheaj: i rate; but restoration of confidence v taking a long time to bring about. - Locally the baaks and other big financial institutions show no disposi- ) tion to depart from the exceedingly cautious position they fcave adopted * for some months past, and subsequent events have fully jutified their policy. " There is, however, a better tone prevailing, albeit monejr is not freely ' avjati|iablo. The returns for butter ■ and wool are now beginning to come in, and fanners are in better heart. As the grod'uco finds its way into buyers' hands, so <the returns will get into circulation, when the immediate prossing demands are satisfied. Already the country is beginning to feel the benefit of the large credits which American and Continental wool buyers came provided with. Commercial , travellers are finding that good business is somewhat difficult to obtain in any quantity; but if storekeepers do show a disposition to order as lightly as possible, they are manifesting, on tiio other hand, a commendable desire to avoid reckless overstocking, with its consequent anxiety to meet engagements as they become due. The attitude of the banks, so far, lias had a most salutary offect upon business, and whether the economy of storekeepers is the result of force of circuTSte^ances Or of a desire not to overrun the constable, as a matter of but little moment. The fact is that it is being exercised is in itself a healthy sign for the coming year. WOOL. — A record wool salo is expected to take pllace on .January 9, in Wellington, and some 15,000 to 10,000 bales, and possibly more, will bo offered. Farmers will have but very littlo time left now to get their wool in for the ale, as the Christmas Holidays intervene, and everything should be in the store not later than the 31st inst. Buyers start valuing on the 7th January, and efforts are being made to get them to value on the (ith as well, in order that the largo offering may be got through in good time, borne latitude in the matter of reserves may be necessary. It is difficult to forecast prices, but it is felt by those in close touch with the market that they will be slightly lower for average coarse wools and medium crossbreds. Poverty Bay has sent in 8141 bales to the January sales, and the shipments from Gisborae to date -amount to 13,862 bales. It i expected that 17,600 bales wll be despatched for the March sale. Apropos of local sales, it is clear that these are growing, and it would seem to be only a matter of time when, instead of the wool going Home to be sold, the buyers will purchase in the country of origin and ship tlie wool to their own ports. The recent sales i nMelbourno and Sydney have shown -that this practice is growing, and that buyers much prefer doing business in -wool-growing countries is evidenced by the fact that Australia is " fulll of them " at the present time. Butter. — There is no improvement to report in the London butter quotations for the past week, and the High Commissioner's cable indicates pretty clearly that a rise is not imminent. The price stands at 110s, practically 113 d per lb, while the local wholeale price is Is. Of course, the local wholesale dealer has to sell in driblets (in a manner of speaking), has cartage, packing, wrapping, printing, and other charges to meet on_ a heavier wages bill than the British factor, also bad debts. At the same time, if an improvement is not forthcoming in London prices local quotations should see a drop of £d early in January, when it is fair to assume that the consumer will get the benefit of the half-penny which the retailer has been enjoying since last Friday week. Butter should i then be procurable at the even shilI ling for the best brands. ! Cheese. — Cheese is down in sympathy with butter; but there "has been a marked improvement in the quality compared with that of last i year. Makers appear to be doing j all they know to turn out a firstJ class, uniform article. Some diffi- , culty is being experienced with the i quality of the milk, and in a num- , ber of cases where milking machines are employed this difficulty is atI tributed to the want of cleanliness in 1 the parts of the machines. This is proved by tho excellent quality of j milk fom other dairies where milk- ! ing machines are in use. The coni- ' plaints last year in connection with the shipment of green cheese will disappear this, as cheeses are now i held back much longer than forznerl ly, and the raising of the tempera- . ture on board ship has tended to land them in much better condition in London than ever before. Meat. — The meat trade has hardly ! yet begun, and slaughtermen are scarce. Not until near the end of the Australian season are "full boards" to be looked for in New Zealand slaughter houses. The first of the New Zealand'lamb- is due in London about the middle of next month; i The extremely favourable weather and the abundance of feed have done much towards inspiring the belief j that the present season will be very much better than last; but there is ' room for much improvement in the ' prices. The supply of_ beef will be ! much lighter this season. ! Produce. — There is not much to report with regard to the produce mar- , ket. Fowl wheat is exceedingly scarce, bringing from 4s 6d to 4s 7d I and milling wheat is being used. I Onions are firm, having advanced I 10s for Australian, quotations being fom £7 10s to £8. Flour, bran, pollard, oatmeal are. unchanged. Now that Wellington has a regular Island service, business men here will find an added interest in "our outlying possessions," as Mr Seddon used to describe the Cook group, to say nothing of the French possesdons. The Manapouri will inaugurate the service on January 23, and will connect with the Spreckles boat at Papeete on the 12th. The Cook Islanders have at present fruit to sell, and they will take from New Zealand prints (that suit their tastes), shoes, and biscuits. — Post.