Finance Stocks and mining

Free Lance, Volume XIX, Issue 992, 9 July 1919, Page 29

Finance Stocks and mining

DURING the first half of the current year about £3,000,000 was subscribed to the Victory .Loan of £10,000,000 and the Acting Minister of finance again draws attention to the compulsory clauses of the BinanceAct to frighten people into subscribing. This seems to be a waste or enemy on the part of the Minister for there are some business houses that will not subscribe before it is absolutely necessary to do so. that a firm should subscribe £5000 and " did subscribe that amount on Uec. di last, it would have been at a los 5 to the subscriber, for the reason that the State allows only 4J £er while bv using the money in business at &Bt 6 per cent, could be .earned, so that on £5000 the loss during the six months would have been about id/ 10s Furthermore, it must not be forgotten that many firms and joint stoSk companies have had to borrow from the banks to subscribe to the loans and will have to do; so again and it is obviously in their interest to put off borrowing to the very last minnte * ***** It is not those who come under the compulsory clause of the Finance Act that the Minister needs to canvass, but the other class—the very small mvestor The small investors, the; ones who cln subscribe from £5 to £100 should 3l be refunded up. Unfortunately very little if anything is being done to attract the attention of the small investor. On the contrary the impression is given that the bigger.men are not doing their duty, and, until they do so the small-men need not worry. * * . * * Seeing the difficulty the Government is experiencing in respect to toe Victory Loan it must be apparent to everyone that the limit of local loan flotation has been reached. future loans must be raised m London, and that opens up the question whether London can supply any large amount. At present borrowers outside ot tne British Empire can obtain money from the United States but this cannot go on very long. At all events London is bound to be drawn upon very extensively and the extraordinary demand is bound to have an adverse effect on the rate of interest. However, this matter is not likely to arise this year, and by the time we do want to borrowin London the conditions may be very different. * * ' * * There is, however, plenty of money in England for investment in sound industries, and this is proved by the remarkable success which attended the issue of Bovril Company's six per cent, five-year notes in London. The issue was undoubtedly an attractive one, but the wonderful response must have been a surprise to everyone concerned, the total amount of £300,000 being oversubscribed on .the opening day, by Bovril shareholders alone while before on© o'clock on that day the public subscriptions exceeded £3,000,000. Applications ranged from £10 to £100,000, there being five of £50,000, and 63 between £10,000 and £40.000. *• * # * Then again Sir Joseph Ward apparently had no difficulty in arranging for a million sterling fo"r Southland's hydro-electric scheme, and a simiar amount for Otago, and the money will be available should the local bodies in the districts named delegate the work to syndicates which they would be well advised to do if they wish to get the'work done quickly and thoroughly. * * * * The report of the Oceanic Steam Navigation Company, Ltd., (White Star Line) for the year ended [December 31 last shows a profit of £1,341,542 ■, as against £1,534,261 in the previous year. At present the fleet numbers 37 vessels, with a gross tonnage of 425,686 tons, while four vessels. are in course of construction, which will add 60,000 tons The vessels of the fleet, with the exception of the Olympic,

which is fully requisitioned, are being gradually released from Government control. After providing for excess profits, the trading profit called for a reduction of the dividend to 17 per cent, against 20 per cent, for 1917, which absorbs £637,500, and to general purposes £100,000 was allocated. **' » • The market for investment shares is very active. There appears to be a boom in shipping shares, P. and O. shares selling up to £495 with every prospect of going higher. The directors intend distributing part of the accumulated reserve and this is the reason for the advance. Huddart Parker shares are- firmer on rumours of amalgamation with the P. and O. Company. National Bank rights, buyers lis; Bank of New South Wales, buyers £39; Bank of New -Zealand (£3 6s'Bd), buyers £14; (£6 13s 4d), buyers £18 7s 6d; Union Bank, old, buyers, £58 15s; new sales £59; Equitable Building, buyers £8 15s; Wellington Investment,- buyers 10s 9d; Wellington Trust and Loan, buyers £5 15s 6d; New Zealand Loan and Mercantile, sales £115. * * .■ * * National Insurance, buyers £3 19s 6d; New Zealand Insurance, buyers £14 lis; South British Insurance, sales £8 Is; New Zealand Refrigerating, sellers 70s; Meat Export (52s 6d), buyers £3 3s 9d ■; Auckland Trams, buyers, 225, Union Steam (pref.), buyers 20a lOd; Kaiapoi Woollen, buyers £5 15s; Mosgiel Woollen, buyers £5 13s; Wellington Woollen, ordinary, buyers £8 2s, preference, buyers £5 ss; Westport Coal, sellers 30s; Leyland O'Brien Timber, buyers 27s 6d; Golden Bay Cement, buyers, 19s; Manning aid Co, buyers £3 ss; N.Z. Drug, buyers £2 15s; Sharland and Co., buyers £1 10s 9d; Ward and Co., buyers £5 Is; Wairaraflpa Farmers', sellers £6 lls<; Inscribed Stock, sellers £96 10s; War Bonds, sellers £96 7s 6d. ****** In the mining market there were buyers'of Waiki at 44s 3d; Grand Junction, sellers 14s; Waihi Paeroa, sellers 3s 9d; Mount Lyell, sales 24s 6d. * * * <* The quality of the cattle offered at Burnside was well up to the average, and prime bullocks sold at an advance of £1 per head. Prime bullocks £21 to £23 17s 6d; medium bullocks £18 to £20; light and unfinished £14 to £16; extra prime heifers £17 12s 6d ; to £19 17s 6d; medium £13 to £14 15s; light £9 to £11 10s. The prices at Addington were: Extra prime steers £26 10s; prime steers £14 10s to £21; ordinary steers £10 12a 6d to £14; prime heifers £10 10s to £15 ss; ordinary heifers £7 15s to £10; prime cows" £10 10s to £14; ordinary cows £9 to £10 ss. At Feilding fat cows made £9 7s 6d to £10 3 S and at Aokautere £12. At Westfield the prices were: Fat steers £13 10s to £22 17s 6d: cows and heifers £6 to £15. * * * * At Burnside prime wethers realised 53s 3d to 60s 3d; medium wethers 40s • to 48s; light and unfinished 25s to 355; prime ewes 45s to 535: medium ewes 34s to 38s 6d; light and inferior 22s to 28s 6d. At Addington the prices were: Extra prime wethers to 625; prime wethers 40s to 60s; medium wethers 34s to 395; lighter wethers 28s 8d to 33s 6d; extra prime ewes to 50s 6d; prime ewes 37s 6d to 43s 3d; medium ewes 30s to 375; lighter ewes 23& to 29s 6d. At Otaki fat wethers made 42&; at Feilding fat ewes realised 24s 6d to 435, and at Aokautere fat ewes made 25a 3d. At Westfield best heavy prime wethers made 45 s to 48s; medium to heavy prime 39 s to 445; light prime wethers 35 8 to 365; unfinished 25s to 345; best heavy prime ewes 35s to 38s 6d : lighter prime ewes 31s to 345; light fat ewes 28s to 30s. * * * * At Burnßide prime fat lambs sold at 32s to 38s 3d; good 28s to 30s 6d: others 24s to 26s 6d. At Addington the prices were: Extra prime lambs to 35s 9d; prime lambs 28s 6d to 32s 3d; medium lambe 24s to 28s; lighter lambs, 20s to 235. At Feilding fat lambs «old up to 30s 6d. At Westfield best lambs made 29b to 32a, others 18s to 26a. •» * * * At Addington baconera made £4 10s to £7 10s; choppers £4 10s to £8; porkers 43s to 70s. At Westfield large choppers and heavy baconers made £7 to £10 15s; small choppers and light, baconers £5 10s to £6155; large workers, £4 10s to £5 8e; medium porkers, £3 7s 6d to £4 8b; small porkers £2 10s to £3 sb.