LONDON COMMERCIAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 9710, 4 January 1895, Page 3

LONDON COMMERCIAL NOTES.

[FROM OCR OWN CORRESPONDENT.]

; , London, December 1.... Wool. —Wool does not look so well as one could wish. I hear that with the opening of the present week some increase in the competition was exhibited, but, notwithstanding small catalogues and liberal withdrawals, the market has oh the whole rather lost ground. The bulk of the produce sold has been absorbed by the Home and German sections of the trade, French buyers still confining their purchases within the narrowest limits. As compared with the prices current at the close of the September-October series, Merino wools may be quoted at an average decline of 10 per cent., the shrinkage in values being most marked in medium end lower scoured parcels, and in greasy descriptions of inferior and wasting character. Cross-bred sells at a depreciation of v from 5 to 7£ per cent., heavy-conditioned and shabby prrcels being the more difficult of sale as usual. The current sales are to close on the 7th inst., the proframme having been curtailed by arrangement, 'rom Messrs. Brown and Eagle I learn that at the present time there are 139,421 bales of wool afloat en route for London. Of this total 1097 bales come from New Zealand. Messrs. 0. Balme and Co. write to me:— " The fourth series of sales ,at Antwerp commenced yesterday with a catalogue comprising 2350 bales River Plate wool, ot which only some 550 bales were sold. There was but a moderate attendance of buyers, and competition was slow and dragging. Compared with the values ruling at the September auctions in the same market, prices are reported to show a decline of 10 centimes per kilo." . .UN-

Frozen Meat.-— Frozen meat would look much better, so far. as New Zealand is concerned, \if j the '. shipments were of better quality, or, at any rate, more of the quality which shippers have so often been told is required for the London market. But so long as New Zealand producers will flatly disregard capable advice, and persist in sending home a class of meat which they have bceu warned is unsuitable, so long they will have to be content with dull sales and poor prices, especially when: they still continue to use those atrocious barbed metal staples which have already nearly killed several people, and which, if sent home much langer, will do much towards killing a trade, and a colonial industry too. I cannot help it if my words are unpalatable. My mission is not to flatter falsely the New Zealand producers, and to "crack up" their produce to people in the colony, but to tell them the truth, and to transmit to them the criticisms which I hear at first hand from the most competent critics in the world. It is optional with the New Zealand meat producers to profit by my information and counsel, or to scora both. But it they choose the latter course they won't sell their mutton, .<ave at an "enormous sacrifice." That's all! Look what Messrs. Nelson Brothers wrote to me only a few days ago:—"There is no improvement to report; indeed, inferior light half-finished sheep, with which the market is glutted, hare retrograded, and 2§d per lb is now outside value,, and yet loug lines in recent shipments consist entirely of these sheep and plana old ewes, which are hard to move at 2Jd per lb. New Zealand merinos and small plain sheep of 451 b, as has been pointed out repeatedly,, are practically unsaleable as long as good Plates and Australians can be bought id id per lb more money. Prime Canterburys seldom come on the market, the bulk of so-called Canterburys are of a distinctly North Island type— of leg, light of meat, fat and wasteful-—they sell from 3d to 3.id per lb ; a few of better class making 3§d to 3£d per lb. - Dunedins are worth about 3d per lb, and are rising in estimation, cutting better than present-day Canterburys. Southlands continue mixed in weight and quality, fetch about 3d per lb." And yesterday they wrote to me in much the same strain :—" More seasonable weather the last week, helped by light arrivals, has given more tone to the market, and there has been marked advance in price for second-class sheep. Fairly good North Islanders are worth 3d per lb, but good, well-finished carcases are not plentiful, despite the heavy stocks on hand, the bulk of consignments being light, half-meaty sheep that do not meet buyers' requirements. New Zealand merinos are practically unsaleable in face of the really good Australians and Plates now to hand, and they, and the large number of old ewes, should not be sent Home. Merinos hare sold at per lb, and old ewes at 2|d per lb to 2Jd per lb. The prime old-fashioned Canterburys are now seldom seen, and in their place come leggy, coarse sheep of North Island type, light of meat, fat, and wasteful. They sell from 3|d per lb to 3§d per lb, a few of better class making 3|d to 3§d per lb." Now, what I want to know is—Why are those " prime old-fashioned Canterburys " so seldom seen ? Are there no more of them to come ? If so, you may say good-bye to your frozen meat trade! For . London buyers will not stand those " leggy, coarse, fat, wasteful, half meaty sheep which Messrs. Nelson Brothers so object to. If you can only send these, you had better stop sending any, until you have grown a fresh stock of "prime old-fashioned Canterburys," as otherwise you are simply damaging your market and giving your meat a permanently bad name. And for goodness sake do cease using those murderous metal staples. The latest arrivals of New Zealand mutton have been: Aorangi with 20.575, Perthshire with 500. Pakeha with 41,327, and lonic with 28,000 carcases. The last two arrived on \Y ednesday, and storage for both cargoes has been arranged. The Aorangi finished discharging on the '27th; the Ruapehu still retains her meat on board, there being no cold-storage room available. Live Cattle.-—A serious, if not fatal, blow has been struck at the prospects of the importation of store cattle from the colonies being permitted by outbreaks of foot and mouth disease and of pleuro-pneumonia among stock iu various parts of Great Britain, unquestionably due to importation from America and elsewhere. There is now no hope of such importation being permitted for many a long day to come, if ever. Butter.—Colonial butter is down about 2s, but the fall is not looked upon as necessarily permanent though the market seems slightly weaker. The first shipment of New Zealand butter came in the Aorangi and is said to be of excellent quality, but I have not yet heard what are its prospects as to price. I may hear before closing this letter. It is noteworthy that whereas last year up to this period 8244cwt. of New Zealand butter had been received, this season the quantity up to ' last week is as yet only 376cwt., a decrease of no less than 78G8cwt., while Australia shows an increase of 10,632 cwt. Why is this? The theory set up is that your backward spring has been the cause. Is it so? It should be noted that the imports of butter from abroad this season are 10 per cent, in excess of last year's, quite irrespective of any increase in home production. Reverting to the dairy produce market I may observe that this week s cooler weather has tended somewhat to improve matters, but the provincial markets have been so heavily overstocked that large amounts of colonial butter came back to London, and so f rices are down 2s to 4s lower than last week. Indeed, some authorities fear that the season's maximum value has already been touched. A serious difficulty seems likely to arise in disposing of last season's butter, which has been so long cold-stored as purchasers insist on having the new season's supply, and will not look at the stored butter, however good, while newer produce is obtainable. Danish butter is 16s to 18s per cwt lower this year than it was last year at the end of November. New Zealand arrivals duriug November have amounted to 1593cwt. Messrs. W. Weddel and Co. are urging upon the Board of Trade the propriety of showing respectively in the official returns the dairy produce imports from Australia and New Zealand instead of their being all included under the heading " other countries." They urge that each colony's butter quantities should be set out separately. The authorities have promised to " consider" the matter.

Cheese.—There is no New Zealand cheese in the market just now. If there were, it would sell well. So of course it is not here. How is it that this want of accord between supply and demand so frequently occurs in regard to New Zealand produce Kauri Gum.—Kauri gum shows little change in price, bnt there is a much firmer tone in the market, and an unusually large proportion of the quantity offering has found purchasers. Hides and Skins.—Hides (heavy ox) advanced £d, but later this rise disappeared and old rates resumed sway, Cow hides have fallen £d in some cases. Sheepskins maintain former rates, crossbreds fetching best prices. New Zealand best selected rabbitskins have been below the usual quality, and so fetched £d per lb less than at previous sales. Tallow.— is la down for mutton and 6d for beef. The month's imports from New Zealand have been 1365 casks. Copra.—Copra is flat, and only lower prices can be obtained.