GENERAL MARKET REPORT.

Northern Advocate, 8 May 1914, Page 8

GENERAL MARKET REPORT.

AUCKLAND, Wednesday

General business lias opened fairly well for the week. Wholesale transactions are numerous, for both town and country, although orders are generally on a small scale, as buyers are still operating cautiously. Retail trade is not particularly active, but draper/ houses are kept busy with winter goods now selling well. The Talune has loaded the usual produce and stores for the Islands. The Opawa is also to load this week for the United Kingdom, taking in meat and general cargo, but no butter on this occasion. The Marama will take consignments for Vancouver on Friday. The cargo this month is of smaller tonnage than usual, and will consist chiefly of butter, beef, wool, and kauri gum, but the Marama will be nearly a full ship when leaving Auckland, having already taken in a large cargo at Sydney.

Potatoes: Locally-grown are . now within very small compass, but supplies are not quite exhausted, and a few are still dribbling into the market. These must be sold at once, as they show signs of growth, and will not keep. The bulk of the supplies are now coming in from the South, and the market is firmer there, as shippers are chary about selling, and this makes forward business difficult. At the same time the position is not quite as strong as it looks, seeing that Auckland will not require so many as usual, and merchants have bought less for forward delivery than in previous years. The demand started* later than usual by a month or six weeks, on account of the much larger quantities grown locally, and this shortening of the shipping season will not be made up at the other end, as our own will be ready in the spring at the usual time.

Seed:' A small inquiry has set in. Up-to-Date are the first required, but there is also a call for Northern Star and Gamekeeper, which will be required at the end of this month.

Onions: Store stocks are working off rapidly, as there is a good demand. Canterbury are asking more money Tor forward delivery, and higher prices are expected.' Very few local are now coming in. Price is firm at £ 6 10s ex store. ;

Oats: There is no change in price. Shippers are all waiting for cheaper freights, but they are offering a little more freely this week, and are evidently more anxious to secure local business. Demand is quiet at present.

Seed Oats: A very good demand continues.

Fowl Wheat: Good sales are reported, and the price keeps firm at 4s 10d

Bran: Price appears to have touched bottom, and although there is no quotable change in price there is a flrme r tone in the market. Shipments to Europe have reduced the supplies now available, and raillers are not now so keen on selling at the low prices prevailing.

Pollard: Still scarce. Australian price is much higher, and this prohibits further importation. , New Zealand mills are not producing' so much as usual at present, and the market remains bare.

Chaff: A little local is coming in, and good supplies of Southern are also available. No change in price.

Maize: Not much local is arriving from the Bay of Plenty. The Manuka brought 965 sacks of Java maize from Sydney, and we hear that lower prices are now named for delivery within a month. The variety is not like the New Zealand maize, being round and smaller in the grain.

Flax: There is more life in the London market, and several inquiries have come in, but prices are irregular, and the high level touched for a day or two last week has not been maintained. Valuqg this week may be given as £21 10s for good fair, £19 10s for high point fair, £18 10s for ordinary, and £16 for common, and as the reduction in freight to the United Kingdom commenced this month a bigger shipping business may be expected. Very little has been exported lately, as shippers were waiting for the cheaper freight.

Fungus: Not much coming in at this time of the year, and 51d is .the best price obtainable. It is expected that lower values will rule shortly. KAURI GUM. Supplies since last report have been smaller than usual, ana fair quantities have,been sold on arrival. A large proportion is still of low grade gum, and this.is difficult,to dispose of. It is expected, however, ( that with the decided break in the weather that has now taken place the heavy rainfall that i s reported in most districts will

result in an improvement in the quality of the gum coming in, as it will force the diggers out of the swamps, and it will also enable them to work the higher ground, which has been hard and unworkable during the summer. The Government returns just to hand show that the 2488 tons of gum exported during the three months ending March 31, were valued at £135,624, compared with 1913 tons, valued at £110,445 during the same three months of last year. The market is still inclined to weakness, as buyers are not at all keen on operating, having already secured sufficient for shipping orders on hand. O r dinary: There are a few inquiries at. limits slightly below reserves, so that not much is changing hands. East Coast: Very little is coming in, and as the demand is slow, rather low prices are accepted. Kescraped: Small quantities on hand, but in most cases reserves are too high, and operations are limited. Black: A good demand for rescraped and steel, which are changing hands at good prices. Poor grades are at lower prices than at last report. The quality is not up to standard, containing too much sugar and streaky- pieces. Bush: All grades in fair demand. In fact supplies ai-3 hardly sufficient to meet the demand, and if clean can be readily placed at fair* prices.

Chips and Dust: Changing hands at lower prices. The majority of consignments contain too much dust, and are still held unsold in Auckland stores. There is a large amount of poor dust on hand, which cannot be sold at any price.