COMMERCIAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11537, 23 November 1900, Page 4

COMMERCIAL.

New Zealand Herald Office.

Thursday evening. Another busy week is reported on the Stock Exchange and transactions have been numerous. Investment stock are still firm and difficult to obtain at buyers' prices. In banks there is a steady inquiry for New Zealands, buyers offering £1 2s 6d, but sellers decline to "quote. Nationals sold at £3 8s 3d, and there are buyers at £3 7b, with no doclared sellers. There is a strong inquiry for insurance stock. New Zealands are wanted at £3 7s 6d, sellers asking £3 10s. Buyers of South British offer £3 lis and sellers ask £3 13s 6d. Nationals sold at 19s 3d, cum. div. of 9d per share, and 18s 3d ex div., closing with buyers at 18s 6d ex div. The quotations for Now Zealand and River Plato are'unchangecl. In gas stock Auckland fully paid sold at £13 15s, and there aro buyers at £13 12s 6d. New issue are offered at £11 ss, with buyers at £10 15s. There are sellers of Gisbornes at £1 19s. In shipping Northern Steams (contributing) sold at 6s 7d and 6s 9d ex div., closing with sellers at 6s lOd and buyers at 6s Bd. In coals there aro buyers of Hikurangis as 8s 6:1. Taupiri Mines sold at 18s, and there are still sellers at that price. Westports sold at £3 15s and there are still buyers at that price. There are buyers of Kauri Timber Co. (contributing) at 2s Id, and of Leylund and O'Brien at £1 Bs. For Kaiapoi Woollen £6 13s is offered. D.S.C. sold at 8s 9d, and there are sellers at 8s 9d and buyers at 8s 6d. The mining market has been active, attention being specially given to Waihi stocks. Waihis are in demand at £11 15s, with no seller?. Grand Junctions sold at £2 5s and £2 10s, a lino of 500 changing hands at the latter price. Subsequently the market firmed, closing with buyers at £2 133. There have been numerous sales of Waihi Extended from 2s 7d to 3s, and 2s lid to os, closing with sellers at 3s and buyers at 2s lid. Waihi Consolidated sold freely from 10£ d to Is 4d, closing with sellers it Is 6d. Waihi South sold from lid to Is 3d, closing with sellers at Is 2d and buyers at 13. Waihi Consols sold at sd, sid, and 6d, and, closed with buyers at 6jd. Waitekauris sold at £1 19s and £1 18s, and there aro now sellers at £2 Is. Komata Reefs sold at 2s 3d. Crowns aro quiet, with sellers at 15s. Talismans aro wanted at 13s 6d. May Queens sold at 9d. Monowais sold from 2s fed to 4s to 3s, closing with sellers at 4s and buyers at 3s 6d. Broken Hills (Waiomo) sold at 4£d, sd. and 6d, closing with sellers at 6£d and buyers at 6d. Barrier Reefs sold from 14s to 12s to 12s 6d, and closed with buyers at 12s 6d and sellers at 13s 3d.

General trade continues in a satisfactory condition, as noted last week, tho disturbing feature being the continued wet weather, which cannot help interfering with business, coming at this unseasonable time. Mention might also be made of the numerous holidays or partial holidays of the last few weeks, but now that these are disposed of there is a full month for the Christmas trade. There is a good demand for wines and spirits of all descriptions. Maize has declined owing to the lessened demand from Sydney. Prospects 'Ire are considered unfavourable, and some large buyers have been loft with purchases on their hands, as the heavy arrivals have overstocked the market, and in the absence of any Queensland or inland demand, the market is weak at 2s 9d to 2s lOd, while the Melbourne price holds at 2s Bd. Shipments from the coast total 3188 sacks, of which about 1400 were sent straight on by the Mararoa in addition to a few from store. Tho Waimana has since arrived with another 1103 sacks, which have been offered at 2s sd. Seed maize is in fair demand at 3s ex store, and will be required for another month. The market is almost bare of old potatoes, as the 330 sacks by the Mararoa made no impression on stocks. The continued wot weather has further delayed the digging of new crops, so that tho price is easily held for the few arriving. On Monday there was hardly a bag obtainable, but kidneys are now offering at Bs, and round at 4s to 6s. Oats hold their price firm in the South, on account of the war demand, and sales are reported at Is 8d f.o.b. for export. So far the local market has not responded fully to the Southern tone, but as stocks are not heavy the cutting of a few weeks back has now ceased. Local oatmeal has been reduced 10s per ton to conform with Southern quotations.

1 There is not much activity in onions, as there is so little to operate on. There are only a few on the mail steamer, so that we shall have to await supplies from Australia. Victoria has been shipping to the South all the winter, and now that old are exhausted they have nothing to offer until the new crop is ready, about the end of this month, when tho market will open at £10 f.0.b., Melbourne. Sydney is already offering lower. The first lot of our owif potato onions are due to be ready next month. Bonedust continues to arrive from Australia, and is meeting with good demand. Heavy sales of dried fruits are reported, further supplies having come to hand by tho Talune.

Nuts show an advance, recent arrivals having been landed at a veiy high figure. Pimento and cloves are a fraction easier. Almonds are higher, and London reports bare stocks.

Lentils arc considerably dearer. India is keeping a ! l this year's harvest, owing to the famine, and there are very small shipments from Egypt. German new lentils have been offered.

Carraways are quoted at an advance of 6s to 7s per cwt, and canary and hemp seed are also on the move upwards. The colonial match factories will need to be on the alert to keep out Continental makes offering at lower rates. Now that it is so difficult to secure full supplies from Wellington, buyers are turning their attention elsewhere.

It is difficult to know how the market is to be kept going in salmon. Several brands are now quite out, and if we can give credence to American reports, they have hardly anything to offer over there until the now season's pack comes in. The small consignments per Alameda justify tho firm prices on the other side.

Haricot beans are almost sold out, and none are to bo had in California at present. The 'Frisco mail advises the market strong in canned fruit, everyone being practically sold out, as shipments in all directions have been very heavy in execution of orders taken earlier in the season. A remarkable activity in the movement of all kinds of goods has been noticed in the Pacific Coast distributive trade, and to such an extent have goods been flowing towards Australasia and the Orient that the regular lines of steamers have been taxed to their utmost capacity. We mentioned last month that the Moana left 700 tons of cargo behind, and not all of this has come down by the Alameda. This has seriously interfered with business, but it is to be hoped that with the new service which commences this week from San Francisco and provides for a steamer every three weeks instead of once a month, the lack of space trouble will disappear. '

American dried • fruits, especially prunes, are reported to be quieter, with the exception of raisins. The new muscatels by the mail show a higher cost than last season. Codfish is weak. , . - , The new hops have been gathered, and it is found that the proportion of choice goods in California is smaller than last year, and prices are expected to advance. Heavy consignments of fresh apples by the mail steamer arrive to a good market, and all of good quality are selling freely at full prices. • . , New York reports heavy business in the iron and steel trade, but not enough to put prices up; in fact, prioes for pig iron continue to settle down in the face of a reduction of something like 25 per cent, in the output and some really large orders. As an explanation of this it is . pointed out by authorities in the business that the pig iron market never stands still; that on an advancing market it never stops advancing until it reaches the top, and on a declining market it never stops declining until bottom is reached. It is regarded as certain that the demand for iron and steel in the next twelve months will be very largesome predict that it will be larger than in 1899— without any great advance in prices, because of the readjustments which have been effected. The freight-tonnage situation is very strong both steam and sail tonnage being about as scarce as by last advices, with freight ratos hardening. _ Castor oil is quoted higher in both drums and cases. . .. Stocks of kerosene must be in a peculiar state in some places, for small shipments are continually sent South from here, and the Wellington price is reported to have advanced to 12s this week, with an absolutely bare market. The present price here for a 1000-case line is 10s nominally, but stocks arc so light that that quantity could not he bought, and vet there is the usual Auckland anomaly in the distributive price which so far keeps at 9s per case. New York reports the market dull, with a further decline of 20 points during the month. The new well which they have found continues to flow, "but not "in such large volume as at first. For the matter of that, it would make little difference to us if the bottom fell out of the well, for in the first place prices throughout Australasia are practically regulated by the visible supply when once freight costs pre estimated, and in the second place oven the New York figures are not so much decided by the mere number of wells supplying the market as they are by the operations of the gigantic Oil Trust, the 'most powerful trust in the world. Wire maintains tho recent advance. _ Flax: The temporary improvement in the London market has induced a little more business here, and sales of gf.a.q. are reported at £14 to £14 10s, while fine has changed hands at £17 upwards In the local produce market the prices are as follow:— butter lOcl, separator butter 7(1. farmers' best 6d and farmers second 5d per lb wholesale. Eggs are 6a per dozen wholesale.

KAURI GUM MARKET. The following aro our quotations of kauri gum for the week ending November 20, 1900 : White gum: Poor ordinary, £23 to ha : good ordinary, unpicked, £43 and upwards; superior ordinary, £68 and upwards; East Coast (good quality), £70 ajid upwards; rescraped, £115 and upwards. Black gum; Nuts, £3 and upwards; mixed, £16 and upwards ; good, £48 and upwards. Remarks on market: Supplies for 20 days of November, 420 tons. The above quotations are merely nominal, for business in gum is almost at a standstill at present. KAURI GUM REPORT. The following is the report of Messrs. Figgis and Co. dated London, October 4, 1900: — The market is very much in the same position as last advised. Reseraped, dial ana ioocS dairk gum, threequarter-scraped and good chips maintain their values, and are still relatively very scarce. Half-scraped sorts are 2s 6d per cwt cheaper. All common kinds continue in slow demand, and are only eatable at low rates; 4000 cases offered, and about 800 sold. Reseraped, 110 cases sold at £7 5s to £11 17s 6d; threequarter-scraped, 110 cases sold at £5 to £6 7s 6d; half-scraped and sorts, 80 cases sold at £3 12s 6d to £5155; chips, 100 cases sold—fair to good pale £> 3s to £4 4s, ordinary to fair £1 13s; sittings and dust. 100 packages sold at 7s to £1 9s; bush. 32 cases sold at £3 5s to £6 17s 6d; dark brown, 190 cases sold—reseraped (good £5 to £6 2s 6d. fair scraped £3 2e to £3 16s, part scraped £2 15s. pickings 18s to £1 12s 6d. The assortment offered was about: 115 cases rescraped, 195 threequarter-scraped, 600 halfscraped. 140 pickings. 200 bush, 1050 dark brown. 1050 chips, 560 packages dust and siftings. „. , . Prices Current, per cwt:—Dial: Fine white picked. £14 to £17; fair and good, £11 10s to £13. Reseraped: Good and line pale. £9 to £11; pale amber. £7 to £8; amber, £6 to £6 10s; dark amber. £5 10s to £5 15s. No. 1, threequarter-scraped: Good and fine extra, £6 2s 6d to £6 7s 6d; fair little mixed. £5 15s to £5 17s 6d. No. 2, half-scraped sorts: Fair to good bold, £3 183 to £3 15s; smaller, ordinary to fair, £3 7s to £3 10s. Sorts: Good ordinary unsortefl. small to bold, £2 5s to £3. No. 3, pickings: Good bold, not very drossy, £2 to £2 ss; inferior woody to middling. £1 to £2. Chips: Bold pale clean, fair to fine, £3 12s to £4 16s; fair palish." £3 to £3 10s; middling, part coated to fairly clean. £1 17s 6d to £2 15s; drossy, inferior coated, part diggers, £1 Is to £1 15s. Sif tings: Good to fine pale clean, grainy. £1 10s to £2 4s; dull and more foul, 16s to £1 ss. Dust: Ordinary to good. 16s to £1 106; common flonr and inferior, 7s to 14s. Dark brown: Selected rescraped, £4 10s to £6; No. 1, threequarterscraped. fair to fine, £3 10s to £3 19s; No. 2, half-scraped, mixed to good, £1 14s to £2 ss; No. 3, drossy, mixed, pickings. 17s to £1 10s; chips, ordinary drossy to fair clean, 14s to £2 ss. Rush: Selected, reseraped. £6 to £8 10s; No. 1. fairly scraped, part pinky. £4 10s to £5 10s: No. 2, half to threequarter-scraped, nart pinky and drossy, £2 17s 6d to £3 15s; No. 3, pickings, low drossy to fair, £1 5s to £2 13s; chips, drossy to good clean bold, £1 143 to £4 ss.

Imports. Deliveries. Stock. Jan. 1 to Sept. 30. Oct. 1. Net tons. Net tons. Net tons. 1900 (say) ... 2234 ... 2060 ... 1820* 1899 ... 3802 ... 2762 ... 1652 1893 ... 2159 ... 2262 ... 627 *To be added to this, after deducting deliveries, 180 ton's arrived since, per Indradevi, OnuMh, and Mimiro. LONDON. By Telegraph.— Association.—Copyright London, November 21. The quantity of wheat and flour afloat for the United Kingdom is 2.055.000 quarters, and for the Continent 1,190,000 quarters. Shares: Bank of Australasia, £72; Bank of New South Wales, £43; Union Bank, £37 10s. Tallow: At the sales 2175 casks were offered and 1475 sold. Prices of all kinds arc unchanged. WOOL. CIIRISTCHURCH, Thursday. The first of the present series of local wool sales was heW to-day, when most of the local buyers and several outsiders were present. The wool was in about as good a condition as at the opening sale last season, but in sympathy with the London market prices showed a decline of from 30 to 40 per cent., the greatest decline being in best halfbreds and merinos. Out of a catalogue of 2605 bales only 1657 were sold, and prices ruling were: —Sliped merino, 7Jd to 8d per lb; greasy merino, medium to good 6Jd to 7id, inferior 4Jd to 6Jd; half bred, superior 6Jd to 71d, medium 5Jd to 6}d, inferior 43d to 5Jd; crossbred, superior 6Jd to 63d, medium 5d to 53d. inferior 4}d to Aid; longwool, superior s|d to 6sd, inferior 4£d tc sd; pieces and bellies, good 4id to 6id, inferior 3d to 4id; locks, 2£d to 31d. AUCKLAND STOCK EXCHANGE. Business Northern Steamshin. contributing. 6s 9d; Taapiri Coal Mines (Limited), 18s; Westport Coal. £3 15s; Broken Hill. (Waicmo). sd, Cd; Komata Reefs, 2a 3d: Waihi Consols, sd, sid. 6d- Waihi Extended, 2s lid, 3s; Barrier Reafs, 12s 6d. BUYERS.—National Bank, 675; New Zealand Insurance, 67s 6d; National Insurance, 18s 6cl; South British Insurance. 71s; N.Z. and River Plate, old. 19s 9d; New Zealand and River Plato, new, lis; Auckland Gas, old, £13 12s 6d; Auckland Gas, new (£4), £10 15s; Northern Steamship, contributing, 6s 8d; Hikurangi Goal, 8s 6d: Westport Coal, 755; Sharfand and Co., 14s; Kauri Timber, contributing, 2s; Leyland-O'Brien Co. (Limited). 28s; Kaiapoi Woollen, £6 13s; D.S.C. (Limited), 8s 6d; Broken Hill, 6d; Kuranui-Calcdonian, 8d: May Quean Hauraki. 7£d; May Queen Extended, 5Vd: Monowai, 3s 3d; Chelmsford, Is lOd; Komata Reefs, 2s 2d; Tairna Broken Hills. 1s; Talisman Consolidated, 13s 6d; Union Waihi, contribating, 39s 6d: Waihi, £11 15s; Waihi Consolidated. Is: Waihi Consols, 6id; Waihi Extended, 2s lid; Waihi Grand Junction, 535; Waihi South, Is; Woodstock. 4s 9d; Barrier Reefs, 12s 6d. SELLERS.—New Zealand Insurance, 70s; South British Insurance, 73s 6d; New Zealand and River Plate, old, 21s: New Zealand and River Plate, new, lis 6d; Auckland Gas, r.ew (£4). £11 ss; Gisborne Gas. 395: Northern Steamship, contributing. 6s lOd; Taupiri Coal Mines (Limited), 18s; D.S.C. (Limited). 8s °d; Broken Hill, 61d; Iron Cap. 6d; Kuranui-Caie-donian, lOd; May Queen Hauraki, lOd; May Queen Extended, 7Jd: Monowai, 4s; New Albumin, 6d; New Whau, 3d; Victoria. 3d; Kapowai, 101 d: Welcome Jack, contributing. Bid; Crown, 15s: Ohinemuri Syndicate, Is; Tairua Broken Hills, Is 2d; Waihi Consolidated. Is 6d: Waihi Consols. 9d; Waihi Extended. 3s; Waihi South. Is 2d: Waitokanri, 41s; Woodstock, 6s; Bunker's Hill, old, 6:1; New Four-in-Hand, 2s; Barrier Reefs, 133 3d; Whangamata Gold Corporation, ss. JOHN Mowbray. Chairman. ALFRED OLDHAM. Secretary. 3.15 p.m.. November 22, 1900. CALL AND DIVIDEND LIST. calls: Made. £ s. d. Date. New Moanatruari .. Nov. 7.. 0 2 0 ..Pec. 1 Welcome Jack.. .. Nov. 13.. 0 0 1 ..Dec. 7 Bunkor's Hill.. .. Nov. 8.. U U 3 ..Dec. 10 dividend: National Fire and Marino Insurance Co — ..Now Northern S.S. Co. _ .. 7p. c. ..Nov. 19 Waihi „ _ _ „ ..026 ..Dec. l