ENGLISH CROPS AND WHEAT MARKET.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIII, Issue 5950, 22 March 1880, Page 3

ENGLISH CROPS AND WHEAT MARKET.

(Mm-li Lano Express, Jan, 25.) All out-door work has been stopped by the frost, but a large proportion of the arrears into which wheat-sowing had fallen had fortunately been made up during the recent open weather. As the temperature has been so low, ho apprehensions have been felt as to the too rapid development of the growing Indeed, ’in some districts, shire, fears . are expressed . that , fromr,sotao cause the plant is deficient in vitality*- This may be owing either to the severity of the winter, of to the fact that seed of a suitable character was not sown. Many of the early-

town'fields are nevertheless looking well, as fair as it impossible to judge at present, and it is to be hoped' that Yorkshire advices do not furnish an index of the general state of the - English crop. In Scotland farm work is tolerably’ forward in. the earlier districts, but of course there has been no ploughing since the frost-returned. The offerings of home grown wheat at the country markets have been On-a more.liberal scale, and some improvement has been noticeable in the condition of many of the ’samples ; but in spite of the general • firmness of the trade, all. except the choicest lots have been neglected, and difficult to sell. The imports of foreign wheat into London continue on a moderate scale. Last Monday’s list of arrivals only slightly exceeded- 30,000 quarters, of which quantity only 7882 quarters wqre frdm America, a smaller arrival than we have had occasion to note of-late. Business bus been quiet, as despite tho undercurrent of firmness which runs through the trade, the week’s requirements have been of an ordjnaiy consumptive character but the scarcity of English wheat in good milling condition has not unfrequenlly. turned the demand on those descriptions of foreign produce which could be advantageously used aivs substitute. The statistical position of the trade offers few fresh features of remark, but a further increase of nearly 1,000,000 bushels may be noted in the visible supply in America, which now stands- at 30,500,000 bushels, against 19,250,000 bushels at the corresponding time last year. According to moderate computations it is estimated that the requirements of Great Britain and France will reach 13,000,000 ■ quarters between this and August, exclusive of the quantity now. on passage. Notwithstaad.ing, this, the trade continues discouraging to holders, as with liberal stocks to select from, and a bad sale for flour, millers have: shown no desire to do more than meet their present requirements. According to the official estimate the surplus : from the American wheat crop for 1879 is put down at 22,400,000 quarters, of which some 13,000,000 quarters have already been exported. No doubt the position is statistically a sound one for holders, seeing.that large as available supplies are, they are not in excess of estimated wants, but it is difficult to convince buyers of this in the actual presence of good stocks, the quantity of Californian wheat afloat, and the increased export movement from India, and it will be still more so, should the season prove favourable to the growth and progress of the English crop. A development of the forces now at work upon the trade maybe looked for in i May -or Juno, but before then it seems ! scarcely likely that any marked rise can be i looked for. Under any circumstances it will , be necessary for the American “ring” to hold over their stocks for some time longer if ) their enterprbe is to result in ultimate suc- • cess.. ..Meanwhile the gigantic attempt to , force up tho price of the staple food of tho ( inhabitants of the temperate zona is regarded , with little faith and less sympathy.