COMMERCIAL.

Mataura Ensign, 19 March 1913, Page 8

COMMERCIAL.

1 ♦ GORE STOCK SALE. i The fortnightly stock sale took place j yesterday at the Gore Corporation Yards. There was a very large ertry of sheep of all descriptions—the largest, in fact, for several months past, the total number being 4300. There w&s no advance on the prices of fat sheep, but good-conditioned store sheep maintained recent values. The bulk of the f yarding campri&ed store sheep and i lambs. Several pons of old sheep were 1 entered, which brought only nomiial 1 values. AKhonph there were 53 pens 1 yarded, oniy seven were passed in, not 1 reaching vendors' reserves. The following sales were ofFoc.ted:— SHEEP. South!:-.;.'! F.intifrs' Co-operative As-soda-.li:-., ~:d.: -7 :at ewes 12s 3d, 13 2, -i :i -~ : ■' fti'i wethers 16s lOd, 1 do. 15s ;ki, i woolly hogget 15s 3d, I 12 fat H : s Pd, 32 2-tooth do. 15s c 6d, 9 f a two Corriedale rams o 10s, 4 raaav 10* Id, 104 full-mouthed t ewes iOs 1!)? lambs 13s 4d, 164 i 4, 6, and 8-tocth owes 15s, 79 2-tooth do. Lh. (i>> full and failing-mouthed I ewes 8s 2d, 11G 2-tooth ewes 20s 6d, r 72 f jli and nulln,2;-mouthed ewes !» a sd, 154 6 and S-t-octh ewes 12s Cd. Pas- ( ted in: 72 4 f.nd G-oooth ewes 13s 9d, c but V'-re fiu'c-S'XjU'ly sold at 16a. t Nation a] Mortgage and Agency Co., |e Ltd: 9 fat >y,vcc ISs, 28 sound mouthed c ewes IK, ril? cad failing-mouthed r ewes 7s 6d. .2, 6 and 8-tooth ewes s 16s lOd, Jl2 sound-mouthed ewes 10s a 6d, 105 latnbs !ls 7d, 70 aged ewes 8s e lOd. Passed it': -2 2, 4 and 6-tooth I fat wethers I- 1 -i -id. and GO 4-tooth Troth- I ers 17s 6d J New Z-z'.&vl L-Oiin and Mercantile t Agency Co.. T.-td.: 140 lambs 10s 6d, r 35 full ar. -' 'aiiin:--mouthed ewes 9s, I 7 ewes 13s ■! r:ims 9s 6d, 160 4, c 6 and 8-tooth 16s 9d, 51 lambs 8 (good) 16s i-i. Passed in :69 fat lambs 15s Id and 11; full and failing-mouthed S 1 ewes 7s 4d. ! , \Wright, St* nhen?on, and Co., Ltd. 30 4 and 6-ttooih fat wethers 16s lid, J 43 2-tooth fat wethers 19s, 3 woolly 11 • ewes 17s 2d, 1-6 s ind-mouthed ewes a 9s 3d, 130 mixed sex lambs 6s lid, 78 ® mixed sex jambs 10s. lOd; 400 mixed V ' sex do. 10s !?d, 10-5 do. lis Bd, and 250 full and farine-mouthed ewes 9s 2d. ; Dalgoiv ar.d Co., Ltd.: 278 2 and 4- 1 tooth wethers 15s. Passed in: 190 full and failing-mouthed ewes 9s lOd. _ Henderson and Co., Ltd.: 14 fat ewes v lis lid, 27 do. Vis '3d, 36 do (a nice r lot) 19s, S do. l'2s, 56 4 and 6-tooth ewes (a very fine lot) 20s Id. Passed \ in: 7B full and failing-mouthed ewes 8s 4d: c CATTLE. x There was a large entry of cattle and v several pens of sine fat bullocks were sold. Prices did not recede and store s cattle maintained the values of recent sales. The folio wiug sales were effec".- c ed:— \ Wright, Stephenson and Co., Ltd.: j 9 fat steers £ll 12? 6d, 1 dry cow £l, , 3 store cows £5. Passed in: 5 heifer* j 1 cow and 4 calves. 1 New Zealand Loan and Mercantile •( Agency Co., Ltd: Fat. cows £5 10s, £5 15s, £7, £5 10s, £6 15s, £5 12s 6d, 5 j at £6 each, 2 fat steers £3 7s 3d and -j 2 heifers £3 15s. Passed m: 2 steers ; £5 12s 6d. s Henderson and Ct;., Ltd.: Fat steers i £9, £8 12s 6d, £7 7s 6d, 2 *t £6, fat } cows £5 10s, £6, £6 7s' 6d, £5 12s Cd, , dry oow £5 15s, 2- dairy heifers £4 ss, &ad two store steers £4 15s. : Southland Fanners' Co-operative Association, Ltd.: Fat cows £7. £6 15s, £6 7s 6d, fat heifers £5 7s 6d. £5, £4 17s ; 6d, £4 10s, 2-two-year-old steers £5 ss, and steer at £6 2s <>d, dry row £6 2s ftjL The firm passed in several head of atore cattle as prices did not reach ven- ■ dors' reserves. ' National Mortgage and Agency 00., Ltd. - 2 fat cows £5 ss, fat heifer £5 12s 6d, young do. £2, 3 dry cows £3 17s, 1 do. £3 7s, dr.iry cow £B, dairy heifer £6, 18-month-old steer £2 9s. Passed in: Pen of 20 two-and-a-half-year-oW. steers at £5. DUNEDIH WOOL SALES. ■ DI;K i'.DIN, March 18. .The-fourth and-final 'wool 6ale of the eeation was held torday, when 1029 '• Ipales were offered. There was a fairly 1 large attendance ot buyers, including a number .of foreign representatives. Competition was very keen, and prices nere fully ,up to, if not better than, those ruling at last sale. A number of lots passed in at the February sale realised 3d to Id per lb more to-day. Scoured wool brought very satisfactory prices. CANTERBURY PRODUCE MARKET. CHRISTCBURCH, March 18. There is a quieter tone in the wheat market, as millers are now well stocked tip and are disposed to hold off for a ■while. Tuscan wheat has been most in demand, but aB Hunters are very scarce this year, any lots offering have generally' found buyers. Pearl is selling better in South Canterbury than further . North. Sales of special milling quality •■i"- of Tuscan this season have been made : in the North, but. Canterbury millers are more independent of harder wheat. Quotations are: Tuscan, 8s 6d to 3| ' 1 6|d; Hunters, 3s <3i«j and Pearl, 3s 7d to 3s 7sd, at country stations. Oats are- very firm in consequence of the scarcity in offerings, but no change i« jftjjoes is reported.

There is no fresh movement in oatsheaf chaff. Potatoes.—Early varieties are selling at £4 5s to £4 10s for delivery this month. Onions are now coming forward more freely and are selling at £4 15s. LONDON WOOL SALES. BY lIiSCTBIO TELEGKAPH.—OOPYRIGHT. FEB UNITS!- PBESS ASSOCIATION. LONDON, March 18. The following prices were realised for the fleece portion of the clips named at the wool sales: —JO, top 151 d, average Moawhango, 14d, 12£ d, Tuparuparu, ll£d; Toko, 12d, lid; Tokoranga, Hid, 10|d; Hahia< lid, 10|d. THE CHEESE MARKET. AN INTERESTING REPORT. Y7riting under date February 6, Mr R. Ellison, the representative in London of the National Dairy Association of New Zealand, has some interesting things to say of the cheese market as it stood in England at that date. He points out first of all that the Home cheese market is governed by many factors, principal among which are the English make of cheese, the Canadian and Continental makes, the condition of the working population of the United Kingdom, and, more especially, the prices of the different classes of food. If cheese is dear and meat cheap, then naturally the consumer buys the latter food. Then, again, the retailer buys his butter and cheese at per cwt. and sells at so much per lb. Before he can reduce the retail price by Id per lb the wholesale price requires to tall 9s 4d per cwt. The j tendency, therefore, is for the retailer not readily to interfere with the retail price. The price of both butter and cheese is largely due to the attitude adopted by the retail trade. If the retail price falls, then the consumptive demand becomes heavier and the price begins to rise gradually. Butter has fallen since the middle of November from 124s to 112s, hut the retail price has hardly been affected. It might again go up to 1245,' or even 130s, and still the retail trade would remain stationary. They try to make their profit while the butter or cheese is cheap. No one likes to bring down prices, as it is so hard to put them up again. The writer then refers to the need of the factories in New Zealand uniting, with 'the object of confining the handling of their outputs to say six firms, instead of some 12 to 15, and continues: "This year our cheese is spread over far too many houses, many of which are only on the fringe of the cheese business. I do not wish to be uncharitable, but on a slow market, as we have recently experienced, many of these firms are inclined to give way and sell under the market price, and for the want of proper outlets they are compelled to sell through brokers. It would be a surprise to our factories if they could get a return showing howmuch of their cheese is handed over to brokers for sale. The broker gets J | per cent. The factory pays 3 per cent, to some firms here for simply handing the cheese to a broker to sell them again. We have some firms securing thousands of tons of cheese in New Zealand on the strength of having some selling ability on this market, whereas they sell in big blocks to their competitors in Tooley street. Why pay 3 per cent, for this?"

As bea ring out the conclusions arrived at by Mr Cuddie in his recently issued circular as regards the want of better transhipment facilities, Mr Ellison states that the Rimutaka cheese is now on the market, but unfortunately some 4400 crates were more or less heated during transhipment from Taranaki to Wellington. This cheese, he says, will have a tendency to weaken the market for the time being. After analysing the present position of cheese j values, the writer concludes that it is ! impossible for the time being to raise ! the cheese market. "Best September I Canadian cheese can be bought," he j says, "at 61s delivered in London warehouses, so we will have to be content with our present price in the meantime." CHEESE EXPORTS. The Tyrone, which sailed from the Bluff on Sunday last, shipped 2046 cases of cheese for West of England ports, to which the following factories contributed: Edendale 490 cases, Mataura Island 320, Wyndhain 250, Otara 200, Te Tua 160, Ryal Bush 150, Toi Tois 130, Mataura 100., and Aparima 106 The total exports for the season to date amount" to 61,079 cases as against 62,577 for the corresponding period of last year. The decrease for the season is 1498 cases, which is mainly attribut- j able to the wet and backward season at! ) the commencement of the dairying lyear. !