GRAIN AND PRODUCE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17877, 24 August 1918, Page 11

GRAIN AND PRODUCE.

OHEISTCHURCH, August 23. Business in tho grain and produce market

uutmucs very restricted, the volume of I racte boing exceptionally small even for the I ff-seaaon of the year. Kecoutly no whe:it ' as been placed tmder offor by iarmers, and ' he general opinion is that, between now and he harvest of 1908-19 very little grain will ome into consumption from growers, the rreat majority of whom have long ere now 'arted with their stocus, there teing nothing n the future of the market to tempt them to io,a over in anticipation of higher prices at i -ater date Information gleaned from varies parts of the country, more particularly rom Canterbury, goes to confirm the pinion that the area to be devoted to wheat his year will ha much helow that of last 'ear. Everything points to it comparatively mall area being devoted to spring wheat, he. decision of the Government to purchase vheat from the Commonwealth in anticipation )i the harvest of 1018-19 being short having) klready had the effect of making quite a number of prospective wheatgrowers tarn heir attention in other directions. For some months now the offerings of oats lave gradually diminished until the present, vhon they have virtually reached the vanishng point. During the last few weeks tho >fferings have been entirely negligible, and it the moment, while there are buyers at :ull quotations, there are no' sellers. The mpreshio.i is. gradually gaining ground that tho supplies in growers' hands aro very light, but it is expected that some relief may be afforded by the threshing of stacks which were kept for ohaffing purposes. At' tbo moment supplies are quite unequal to the demand, which is of course exclusively a local one, no business being done with outaide centres, which in the main securo supplies from the south where stocks ore very much more abundant than they are in thii province. Therj is wm» demand for first-class chaff, which is in short supply, but for the inferior descriptions, of which it is understood there are abundant stocks in stoTe, there is little or no inquiry. The anticipated business in conoieotion with the feeding' of sheep on the snow areas did not eventuate, the amount of chaff which changed hands for this purpose having been unexpectedly small. Althjough thero has been no drop in the value of potatoes, tho current price being still £8 on trucks at country stations, there has bfcon a marked reduction in ihe turnover during the week. The high prices which have ruled in the Dominion for some time have had .the effect of turaing tbo attention of. the Commonwealth trader to New Zealand, and it is understood '.hat a consignment of 1300 sacks is now en route for a North Island port. Of course, a consignment of these dimensions will not have any noticeable effect on the tride, although it may servei to steady transactions, but there is a chance that this consignment is but the precursor of further shipments which may appreciably affect the position. Orders for grass ore coming in steadily in anticipation of spring sowing, but tha volume of the orders indicates that the area to be sown down during the oominjj months is rather smaller than in previous years. Supplies of turnip seed aro reported to be exceedingly short, and recently there has been a very sharp advance in prices, the current quotation being 5s per lb, a level never previously reached in New Zealand. Stocks, as stated previously, aro low, and some doubts aro entertained in selling circles' whether 'sufficient is in hand to meet the require-, ments of farmers, the majority of whom will not think of scouring therr supplies till near lb-? end of the year. The following ar» t&» prioes paid to farBiers at country stations free of commission, »: ks extra: Wheat.—Milling wheat. Government price. Smth Island—August, 6s Old f.o.b. North Is and— iA extra. Oats.—Seed Algerians 4a to 4s Bd, choice to 4s 6d; feed Algerians is to 4s Ed; milling Gartons, is 6d; feed Gartons, is 3d to 4s id; eeod Duns, 4s 6d to 4s 9d; lighter Duns, is to 4s sd; Danish, good quality, 4s Bd. Barley.—Prime malting fo 3d to 6s 6d; medium, 5s 6d to 6s. Flour.—£ls 10s per ton: 1001 b hags, £l6 Be; 501 b bags, £l6 10s; 251 b bajs, £io 15s. Bran.—Shipping, £5 10s; local, £5 15s per ten. Pollard.—£7 10s per ton. Oatmeal.—2slb bags, £3B peT ton; 7!b bags, t'il per ton. Oatsheaf Chafl.—Bright heavy, £5 10s to £6 (nominal). Cocksfoot.—Undressed, lOi to Is 3d per lb; machine dressed, la 8d to Ik 9d. Ryegrass.—Perennial, is to 4s 9d;'ltalian, as to 1b 6d (nominal). Clover.—White, Is to Is 6d; red. Is 4d to Is 6d. Peas.—Partridge, 6s to 6s 6d; White ils to 12s; Blue Prussian, 16» to 16s; Blue Imperial, 15s 6d to 18s. Scotch Tares.—l2s Gd to 16*. Onions.—£22 per ton. liinseed.—£24 per ton. Potatoes.—£B per ton; wed potatoes, £1 10s to £9, according to variety. ' ASHBURTON. Wheat.—There are no Ifnra to be locate, end it is quite evident that all the wheat in this distriot is out of growers' hands. A few odd lots are submitted" at intervals] hut they amount to ve»y little in the aggregate. Inquiries arc still being received from' millers who did not fill their warrants. Good whole fowl wheat can also bo placed at xerulation price. Oats.—The market is very firm 'and late rates are fully maintained. Business is practically confined to mwchants for, as in the case of wheat, fi'most nothing is coming on the market from farmers. Values may he quoted at from 4s 6d to 4s lOd for Gartons. according to quality: Algerians, from 4s to is 4d; Duns, 4s to 4s 6d for ordinary feed i ' = ■■; 1

lines and up to is 9d for choice samples; all prices on trucks. Chaff.—Business is still chiefly confined to ■prime quality, which commands from £6 to £6 sa, f.a.q. £5 10s to £5 15s, second class £5 to £5 6s, inferior quality neglected. WHEAT PURCHASES. OPERATIONS OF GOVERNMENT. The Wheat Controller has issued the following statement showing tho Government's purchases of wheat to date under the War Trade Regulations, 1917: THRESHED.

Bushels. Tuscan or longberry • • • 8,786,063 Hunter's varieties . . » . 8j6,104 Velvet or Poarl . < , , 926,467 276,343 6,793,083 CONTRACTS TO PURCHASE GOOD MILLING. Tuscan or longberry . 8,239,277 Hunter's varieties . . • 859,585 Velvet or Pearl , . , , , 074,475 Total 4,773,337 CONTRACTS TO PUECHASE FOWL WHEAT. Total to dato 656,247 PAYMENTS. . £ 1,374,813 Amount paid to brokers