THE WHEAT MARKET.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13454, 3 June 1907, Page 5

THE WHEAT MARKET.

CAN PARLIAMENT INTERFERE 1

VIEWS. OF LOCAL MERCHANTS.

iNQtrmiKS ? amongst the Auckland representatives of the flourmilling industry on' Saturday elicited very little in regard to the position of the flour market, beyond what was published in our issue of that morning. One of the merchants seen stated that he had received a telegram from Christchurch stating that one firm had raised the price of flour for Auckland to £11 10s a ton, f.o.b. Lyttelton, less 2$ per cent, discount. '■] As freight and other charges amount-to 12s a ton this would make the net price at Auckland £11 16s 9d a ton. The opinion was expressed by the representative of another firm that it was not likely that any business would be done at this figure whilst the local quotations remained at the present figure.

The merchants seen were questioned as to the statement made by the Minister, for Customs (the Hon. J. A. Millar) that Parliament might have something to say regarding the matter. The reply in one case was that it was nonsense to talk of Parliamentary intervention in New Zealand in regard to a matter which was beyond control in the colony, and which depended upon the state of the English market. •

" The only way in which Parliament or the Government could interfere," he said, " would be by buying up all the mills in the colony and running them as a State concern. They would have to pay men to work them, and as they could not compel farmers to sell their wheat lower than the market rate, they would be unable to sell cheap flour when wheat was high, except at a loss. Moreover, if they did so, speculators might buy cheap flour from the Government and ship it away for sale elsewhere, and thus make money out of the Government."; "They cannot control the outside, markets, which govern ours, nor can they rectify such matters as a shortage of seven million quarters in the German wheat yield," was the declaration of another merchant on being asked his opinion regarding the matter.