BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13781, 20 June 1908, Page 3

BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

A CLIENT'S COMPLAINT. [BY. TKLEGBArH.—OWN* CORRESPONDENT.] WELLINGTON. Friday. ''Overdraft" •writes to the commercial editor of the Dominion, asking for an explanation of a thing that puzzles him. " You show how marvellously the Bank of New /Zealand (half private and half State) is prospering. it made some £360,000, and has added £200,000 to its reserve nuid during the year ending March 31, I?C3. What puzzles me is this: "While the Bank is coining money so fast, why does it charge me and others more for our overdrafts? Is it not making enough money? Most big business < firms, when making ho much money, lower the prices of their goods, but this bank does the reverse. Some time ago it charged me 10a a year for the privilege of keeping my account with it. Now it raises the price cf m.v overdraft. Mr. Balance's and Mr. Seddon's policy was to cheapen money to the struggling settler. Under sir Joseph Ward's rule money is getting both scarcer and dearer. Again, it is a'boast that in two or three years this bank (half State-owned) will raise its reserve, now under half-a-million. to one million. •> If the Bank grows richer by £500.000 in tho next two or three years, surely we shall be poorer by .£500,000, as money is very tight with us. Why does not Sir Joseph Ward tell the Bank to leave that half-million with us? We want it badly." FRUIT AND PRODUCE MARKETS. Business on the local fruit and produce markets has been rather dull during the past week, and supplies throughout were fully up to requirements. In potatoes the glut, "of last week has been worked off. and although stocks at the auction sales yesterday were email competition was very dull," and only simrll quantities were quitted. The. onion market was bare, yet the demand was below the supply, and the business done was only of a hand-to-mouth character. Th«rc was no change in the values of grain and fodder generally. Vegetables of all kinds were in about the usual supply, but- prices showed no improvement, on last week's values. In poultry the supply of killing birds was lighter than last, week, for which there was a good demand at late ruling prices. Young pigs were penned in moderate .numbers, and the demand was much better than of late. Cheese, bacon, and bams were offered in very small quantities, but. prices were unchanged. The fruit niaTket was exceedingly dull. The local supplies consisted of considerable quantities of apples from Port Albert-, oranges from Whangarei, and lemons from various districts; also, a few grapes. The latter made high price?, a'nd the other fruits wore quitted at satisfactory values under fairly good competition. Considerable quantities of apples came forward from Canterbury and Dunedin, all of which were landed in splendid condition and sold at slightly better prices than .last week. Only a small shipment of Queensland and New South Wales fruits arrived by the Victoria from Sydney on Sunday, and all being in excellent condition realised fair values. An unexpectedly large shipment of bananas arrived from Tonga by tho Atua on Wednesday, and they were in poor condition. Owing, however, to the extremely cold weather prevailing the demand was not "equal to the supply, and the, prices realised were very much below those anticipated by the importers. The. Talune is due from Fiji on' Monday, but her cargo is on the light side: in fact, much smaller than for many years past,'and owing to the plentiful supply from Tonga it is expected that they will reach a poor market. It is very fortunate, under the circumstances, that she is bringing such a small shipment. Owing to the high prices at present ruling in Sydney it is not likely that- anything in the shape of bananas or other fruits from Fiji will come to Auckland for the next few months. The following were tbe ruling prices at the auction sales yesterday:— Field Produce.—Potatoes: Canterbury, £6 to £6 10s ton; do., others, £5 10s to £6.' Onions: Southern, 9s 6d to 10s cwt. Chaff: Local and Southern, £5 to £6 10s ton.

Dairy Produce.—Farmers' and separator butter, in prints or rolls, lOd to lljd lb; do., farmers' bulk, 8d to lid ; do., milled, in bulk, for export, lid; do., pastry, 8d to lOd. Eggs: Fresh, Is 9d to Is lOid dozen. Cheese: Farmers', 4Ad to 5d lb; do., "factory, large, 6d ; do., loaf. 6.U1 to 7d. Bacon: Factory, 9d to 94(1. Hams: Factory, lOd to mid. Fruit Apples : Local, dessert, superior, 10s to lis ease; do., (rood, 8s 6d to 10s; do., Southern, 7s 2d to 8s 9d: do.. Hobat'fc, 8s to 13s 6d. Grapes: Indoor, 2s to 2s Id lb. Tree tomatoes, 4s to os 6d box. Oranges: Local, dessert, 4s to 5s case; do., Poor Man's, 7s; do.. Island, 9s to 10s 6d. Mandarins: Sydney, 8s to 9s. Lemons: Local, special, lis to 13s; do., prime. 9s to lOs; do., medium, 5s to 6s; South Australian, prime. 13s. Passion-fruit: Local. 10s 6d box; do., Sydney, Bs. Walnuts : Local, 4d to 6d lb. Peanuts: Island, small, lid to 2d lb; do., Japanese, 2£d ; do., Chinese. 2,' dto 2ijd. Bananas, 2s to 3s 6d bunch; do., repacked, 2d lb. Pines: Queensland, 7s to 8s case; do.. Island, 7s 6d to 10s. Cocoanuts, 5s 6d to 8s sack.

Poultry.—Hens, table, Is 6d to 2s each; do., inferior, Is to Is 3d ; table roosters, extra heavy, 3-: 6d to 4s 6d : do., ordinary, 2s 6d to 2s 9d; do., small, Is 3d to Is 9d ; ducks. Is 9d to 3s; geese, 3s 6d to 4s 6d. Turkeys : Gobblers, heavy, 12s to 15s: do., medium, 8s 'to 9s: do., poor, 3s 6d to 5s 6d; do., hens, good, 6s to 8s; do., poor, os 3d to ss. .Miscellaneous.—Young pigs, choice. 13s to 15s each; do., medium, 8s to 9s; d»., poor, 3s 6d to 5s 6d.

... ... PROPERTY SALE. At Messrs. T. Maudeno Jackson's rooms yesterday a. leasehold in St. Mark's Road realised £700 and a property in Hill-street, Newmarket, £415. MESSRS. C. B. KINGSWELL AND CO.'S REPORT. On Tuesday we again cleared mi extra large catalogue of hides, skins, tallow, etc. The market is firm for ail weil-ilayed and conditioned ox; cow is again lower. Hides: Extra stout, 7d to 7Jd; stout, 6Jd to 7d; medium, to 6d; ligTi!, 5d to SAd: cow, best 4id, good 3Jd to 4d, seconds 2£d to 3id, inferior Id to 2d; kip, well-Hayed to 4d, scored 2d to 3d ; calf, first, quality 4d to sd, badly-shaped 3*d to 3Jd, scored 2d to 2.} d per lb. Shcep?kina : Butchers', large Is lOd to 2s, good lines Is Bd, small Is 3d to Is 4d ; lambs' at same price. Tallow: Best, in sound cask.?, 235; in broken casks and packages, 20s to 225; inferior, 12s to 15s per cwt. Rough fat, \{A per lb. Horsehair: Tail, Is 3d to Is sd; mane, 9d to lOd per lb. Bones: Dry, £4 15s per ton. CRISTCTTURCIT GRAIN AND PRODUCE MARKET. [BY TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.] CimiSTOHuncn, Friday. There arc. no fresh developments to note in the wheat market. A fair amount is offering at 4s 4d at country stations, aud some sales have been made at this figure, but millers are not very anxious to operate, and only those who are in immediate want of supplies are purchasing. There is a fair amount of oatsheaf chaff offering at quotation, but the demand for shipment is not so active in consequence of the late* rains in Australia. Potatoes are dull of sale, though prices have not yet changed. There is a large supply of eggs on the market, and the wholesale price has dropped to Is 6d per dozen. LONDON. By Telegraph.— Association.—Copyright. (Received June 19, 8.30 p.m.) London, June 19. BANK OF ENGLAND RETURNS. The Bank of England returns for the week arc. a\s follow:— coin, £37,294,000; reserve, £23.527,000; proportion of reserve to liabilities, 51.06 per cent.: notes in circulation, £28,757,000; public deposits, £9,777,000: other deposits, £46.032,000; Government, securities, £15,073,000; other securities, £29,379,000. MONEY MARKET. Bank rate, 2-\ per cent. Bills in Loudon, 1J per cent. ; in Paris, 1J per cent.; in Berlin, 31 per cent. CONSOLS AND COLONIAL STOCKS. Consols, £87 12s 6d. South Australian 3j per cents., £99 10s; 3 per cents.. £26 10s. Other stocks are unchanged. WHEAT AND i'LuUR. The American visible supply is 25,038,000 -bushels. The reports of heavy rains and floods in the American chief winter crop areas have caused a revival in the markets, but- better crop news fiijm South-east Europe checks the upward move. mefnt, and the future course of the market will be .largely dependent on crops repo?;s. Cargoes aro quiet, but firmly held; 36s 6d is asked for New South Wales March shipments, arid 36s has been paid for June steamer parcels. There is a fair demand for Australian on spot at oßa 6d to 39s 6ri. Flottr is slow and easier, with Australian offering in London at 25s 6d to 26s 6d aud in Glasgow at 27s 3d. BUTTER. The market for butter is very firm, and Danish is quoted at 114s to 116s. j Colonial lias been well cleared. Choicest Australian has sold at 102s to 106s. METALS. Copper: On spot, £5S 2s 6d. Tin: On spot, £127; at three months. £128 ss. Lead, £12 124 6d. Spelter, £19. Iron, 50s 3d. Silver, 2s 1 l-16d per ounce standard. SUGAR. Sugar is steady. German, lis 2d; first marks, 12s lOd. WOOL. On the Bradford wool market there is slightly better inquiry, especially for crofsbreds. Forties bell at lOd; forty-sixes, Is; common sixties, Zlid ; super, 22£ d. Messrs. Dalgcty and Co., Limited, have received the following cablegram from London :— Tallow : Prices are irregular. Beef: Mixed, good colour, unchanged. Other descriptions—Prices have advanced since telegraphing you 6d to Is. There is a brisk demand for edible beef. Frozen meat: Market firm, but not advanced, except tor light Canterbury lamb, for which prices have advanced since telegraphing you id. There is a slightly better demand for mutton and beef.