Finance, Stocks, and Mining.

Free Lance, Volume II, Issue 80, 11 January 1902, Page 5

Finance, Stocks, and Mining.

THK New Zealand and Rnei Plate Land Mortgage Company has had a very satisfactory year and according to cable advices the approximate amount of the net profit is £32,490 The net profit is better than in the pievious year, when it amounted to £30, 42b, and o\er £.1000 better than in 1899, when the not profit totalled £27,207 The annual meeting of shareholder of this company was to ha\e been held in London on the 7th instant w hen a dividend of 6 per cent pei annum wafc to have been declaied The addition of £l"), 000 to the receive fund, as proposed by the directors, will bring that fund up to £108,000, a very large sum indeed for a mortgage company to hold m reserve still it is a police that can bo commended The National Mutual Life Association is another colonial company to show excellent results, and Colonel Templeton had a yen pleasant story to tell tho policy-holders at the annual meeting, held in Melbourne a few clays ago * » » During the year 6000 new policies were written, assuring £1,367,000, and the premiums amounted to £55,000. This was a record in new business for the Association, and it is evident the field agents have been hustling during the year. The assurance fund now amounts to £3,265,000, a very respectable sum indeed. The revenue of the Association now exceeds half a million (sterling per annum, and the management expenses show a substantial decrease compared with previous years. * • * The fire insurance companies operating m New Zealand have no reason to regard last year with any favour According to the latest statistics there were 333 fires reported in the colony dunne 1901, on which the underwriting losses totalled £333,074. * • • The majority of the fire*, occurred in the North Island, and this is a phase of the subject for which underwriters are unable to offer any satisfactory explanation. The experience for several years past has been that more fires occur in the North Island than in the South, and some are disposed to think that this is owing to the fact that a good deal of pioneer settlement is m progress in this island. Hotel risks are a serious matter. Last year there were fires reported as having occurred at twenty-three hotels. and of these seventeen were total losses, the insurances totalling over £30.000. The loss ratio is very heavy. The most expensive fire occurred at Auckland, when Nathan's bonded store and several adjoining properties were totally destroyed or damaged. This fire took place in January last year, and cost the underwriters about £70,000. • * • The largest fire as regards the number of buildings destroyed was the one that swept off twenty-three buildings m Shannon-street, Wellington. There were many business blocks destroyed, the largest of these being fifteen business places at Hunterville, including the Argyle Hotel. * * • There was last year on the average about six fires every week, and each fire meant a loss of £1000 to the insurance companies. Every week last yea' 1 the fire underwriters paid away in losses in the colony £6400. It is estimated that the total premiums received by the fire insurance companies is about £500,000, and, assuming this to be correct, we have to allow about one third, or 33i per cent., say £150,000, for costs of management, uicluding rates, taxes, license fees, etc., while the losses totalled £333,000, so that in 1901 the profits of the twentysax insurance companies doing business in this colony could not have exceeded £17,000 Besides the loss of property there was considerable loss of Me through the fires which occurred last year Altogether fifteen persons were burnt to death or died fiom tho effects of burns and lniunes received Nine of those were children. Five persons were burnt in the fire at the Grand Hotel, Auckland and altogether eight persons met their deaths throueh fires m hotels and boai dinghouses. The fire record is ver\ unsaf isfactory indeed and it is time steps were taken to hold inquiries into the causes of all fires, as is now done in connection with marine casualties

'1 lie Mom Zealaaid Insuiance Conipauj shows a high)} saitisiactoiy balancesheet ioi the } ear ended 30th Novembei, 11)01 The net revenue for the yeai amounted to £091,045 <u> against t3b0,39i) in the previous \eai showing an inciease ot £30,000 Tins company lost \ery he<ivil;> in the colony last \oar, consequently its big profits were earned outside The New Zealand Insurance Company has agencies and branches throughout Australia the Hast, South Africa,, m California and Great Britain and it is- owing to the wide held covered that the losses in one locality arc recovered in another Had the company confined its operations to New ZeiaJand, instead of showing profits there would ha^\ c been heai \ losses, to report * ♦ • The credit baJana a\ ailable including the amount brought forward fiom the previous year, is £77 409, as against £'82, 290 The directors piopose paying by w a,\ of dividend and bonus to shaieholders 3s bd per share, which will abspib £17,500 the iefccr\e fund is to l<t increased b\ €20 000 and the investment fluctuation account b\ £10,000 These pa\ ment>s, together with the interim dividend paid m July last year will absorb £57,500, leaving £19,909 to be earned forward to the new account The dividend for the year is eoual to 17 \ per cent., 2] percent more than in the previous year * * * The Austialasiaji colonies were \ery heavy borrowers last year. The British capitalists were asked to provide £13,297,000, of which New South Wales obtained £5,000,000 Victoria £3,000,000. New Zealand, £2,000,000, Weet Australia, £1,500,000, Queensland, £1,347,000, and Tasmania, £4.50,000. The total shows an increase of about 150 per cent over the previous year * • • In addition to the London issues, £3,460,000 was borrowed within the colonies, making the total £16,757,000, of which New Zealand was responsible for £2,500,000. This pace is not likely to be continued this year, for the London market is not very favourable for the consideration of colonial loans * • » All the Stock Exchanges resumed business on Monday morning, and the dredges also recommenced operations. The output for last year from the Otago dredges was practically the same as in the previous year, but there are hopes that the current year will show a substantial improvement. • • The outlook for dredging on the West Coast is decidedly promising. The initial blunders of the experts have been pretty well smoothed out. Altogether thirty-three dredges will be operating, and, as most of them have got through their preliminary work, the returns ought to he satisfactory from the start. Reports from Dunedin show that the conditions are favourable, and that there is every chance of most of the dredges in the district getting to work shortly. * • • Brokers are not prepared to venture any opinion as to the future of the market, but there is a general agreement that bedrock has been reached. If fio, and the returns are on an improving scale, there must be a revival of interest in dredging. It seems likely that the West Coast w ill show the first upward movement. At any rate by the end of this month we ought to know what the position is going to be » # » The Greenstone Creek dredge is being repaired, but is expected to be at work again very soon. At present, the dredge is abreast of the sandstone bluff on the northern bank of the creek, and has rounded the Chinese tailings She is heading towards the Bun Tuck house, which is about 130 yards distant ■ • • The gold yield of the colony last yeai was the highest for thirtiv \ ears, and vet the mining market was never duller. The actual output of last year was 455.5590z, valued at £1,753,783, an increase of 85,5660z, valued at £320,830, as compared with the previous year The total yield of gold in New Zealand for forty-five years, according to the official record, is 15 064 4600z valued at £59,159,883 • * * West Australia has also had a phenomenal yie'd, the output for last year being 1,881,7060z, oi 300,0000z more than m the previous year. New Zealand and West Australia are the only colonies to show any improvement, and m both cases there is a substantial gain. Queensland's output has been affected bv the drought preventing mining operations being carried on

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