ADDINGTON MARKET

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 2 March 1939, Page 12

ADDINGTON MARKET

RANGE OF PRICES CHRISTCHURCH, Ist March. | Values recovered slightly at the weekly stock market at Addington today, partly because of the smaller yardings. The recovery in the store sheep pens was due to some extent to the promise of rain, which has not, , however, materialised. There was an improved demand for store sheep, both i lambs and ewes hardening. The lamb, prices were somewhat unexpected, but possibly a factor was that the entries had been exceedingly heavy in the last few weeks, and as a good few light 1 lambs had been sent to the works there may not be so many about as was expected. However, the sale was a buoy- ' ant one for a comparatively small entry of about 2000 head, and the values were fully Is a head better than a week ago. The better classes of good rape lambs ( sold to 14s; average selling at 10s to 12s fid. Ewes also met a freer demand than a week ago and were better than those i at the Amberley ewe fair parity. A feature of the salo was the entry of a line I of two-tooth Romney ewes from South Otago, which made 32s 3d. Best twoi tcoths sold up to 24s and others to 17s 3d. In the fat lamb section there was tittle change in the values for bettcr--1 class lambs, butchers pacing more than schedule and competing keenly for 1 quality pens. The export schedule remained unaltered at 73 d, and works buyers operated freely. Seconds sufferec badly and there were several pens ( in this class that sold near 6d a lb. The I yarding totalled about 1500 compared with 2000 last week. The fat sheep enI try was slightly fewer than 5000, a few less than last week. There was a fair- > showing of quality wethers. A com- \ paratively small entry for the second I week in succession was reflected by an improvement in values in the early part of the sale. Best butchers’ ewes 1 sold at from L. to Is 6d a head better ard wethers by Is a head better than at

last week’s rates. Lighter sorts of ewes and wethers, however, were inclined to ease. The market generally slackened as the salt progressed, though wethers were again in on improved demand. At the end of the sale freezing ewes generally were about 6d a head cheaper. Extra prime heavy wethers made to 24s 7d; prime heavy, 21s to 22s 6d; prime medium, 18s to 20s 6d: light, to IBs 6d. extra prime heavy ewes, to 17s 7d: prime heavy, 13s 6d to 15s 6d: prime I medium, 11s Cd to 13s; light, to Bs. There was a substantial drop in the j entry of fat cattle and this enabled the j beef market to steady to spme extent. The total forward was 455, compared with 540 last week. The quality was very mixed and was not up to recent standards. Good drafts of well-bred Herefords and Black Polls were included.. but aged and inferior cows formed big proportion of the total. The heavy entry o '( last week caused a sharp decline and to-day’s prices remained at about last week’s level to a shade better for good quality, with inferior sorts inclined to be still weaker. There were a few cases of particularly good mediumweight steers selling at up to 35s a 1001 b, but the bulk of the better beef kept at about 30s to 325. Cows failed to teach the £5 mark in numerous cases Extra prime heavy steers made to £ls 2s 6d; prime heavy, £l2 15s to £l3 15s: prime medium, £lO 15s to £l3 ss; ordinary, £8 10:. sd; extra prime heifers, to £lO 2s 6d; prime, £8 10s to £9 10s; medium, £6 10s to £8; light, to £G ss; prime cows, £6 10s to £8 12s 6d; medium, £5 to £0; light and aged, to £4 10s. At the beginning of the fat pig sale there was only a medium entry of porkeis, but with the late arrivals the total was one of the largest this year. For the first three races values were on a parity with those of last week, but for the remainder of the sale an easing of from 2s to 4s took place. Choppers were in fairly heavy supply, and again met a good sale. The bacon entry was the largest so far this year, between 400 and 450 being penned. Values from the outset were 3s to 4s easier than at last week, and remained so throughout the auction. Porkers brought 42s Gd to 55s 6d, an average price a lb of 6Jd to 7d; and baconers brought from 55s 6d upward, for an average price a lb of from ssd to 6]d. Choppers made £3 3s 6d to I £5 6s.