DAIRY PRODUCE TRADE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19503, 6 December 1926, Page 12

DAIRY PRODUCE TRADE.

;[ ADVANCE RATES RAISED. IMPROVEMENT IN OUTLOOK. BOARD'S POLICY JUSTIFIED, r ACTING-CHAIRMAN'S VIEWS. JBY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.] WELLINGTON, Saturday. The Dairy Produce Board lias received cabled advice that advances on dairy produce will bo raised 2d per lb. on butter -and Id per lb. on cheese on all produce graded on and after to-day. Hi is makes the new rates of advance as follow: Butter.—Creamery : Finest grade, Is 2d per lb. • first grade, Is l£d; second grade, Is o|d. Whey butter: first grade, lid; second grade, lOd. Cheese.—Finest grade, 6|d ; first grade, 63d; second grade, 6|d; with a premium of 3s 4d per crate for finest grade. Advances against store warrants will now be: Creamery butter, £3 per box; vdiey butter, £2; cheese, £4 per crate. The former rates of Is for finest butter and 6d for finest cheeso have obtained since October 15. In commenting upon tho position, Mr. J. R. Thacker, acting-chairman of the board, states that the improvement in advances and tho market prospects would be welcomed by all producers. Tho whole of the new season's arrivals of butter, practically 2000 tons, had been cleared and the lonic shipment of 70,000 boxes arriving on December 6, would meet a market bare of New Zealand supplies. Australian advices showed that her export would probably be light on account of dry weather. This, together with tho ending of the British coal strike, improved prospects considerably. The increased consumption by miners was also improving the cheeso outlook. Speculations by Americans. From tho board's point of view, said Sir. Tliacker, tho improvement in advances and the general outlook was satisfactory, as it definitely disproved the mass of propaganda and misrepresentation with which the introduction of the board's marketing policy had been met. It was not surprising that sectional opposition and propaganda had confused some producers. That attitude had . been helped by the circumstances of the strike and the sustained storage of New Zealand butter. In connection with this storage information was now,, available showing that American speculators had been responsible for the holding up of several hundred thousand boxes of New Zealand produce as an investment. The blame for this had wholly fallen upon the New Zealand producer, who thus had been beaten with a stick of which he was himself more largely the victim than the man responsible. These sticks, however, had now been absorbed and Mr. Thacker was confident that the board's policy would re••normal > marketing on a basis •which would prevent a repetition of such experiences in the future. Snggestion of Boycott a Myth." The suggestion of a boycott had been proved a myth by market events. The advantages of 'the steadying effect of the price-naming policy of the joint committee of London importers and the agency would, he was satisfied, appeal to regular distributors and speculative propaganda would ultimately die a natural j death. It was the regular trader who made contact with the consumer and it was with the consumer that the producer wanted his closest contact on the basis of quality and fair market price. Farmers now had the chance to kill for all time the severity of the annual slump, helped by manipulation, which in the past always affected New Zealand butter. Variations, of course, would take place, but Mr. Thacker was satisfied that the board's policy would work to the advantage of consumer as well as producer. •< LONDON BUTTER MARKET. IMPROVEMENT CONTINUED. RETAIL PRICES TO BE RAISED. Australian and N.Z. Cable Association. Weed, 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, Dee. 4. Iho position oh the London butter market continues to improve. Thanks largely to the resumption of work in the coalmines ouying has increased greatly in the industrial centres, and retailers are also filling their needs for the Christmas markets. Consequently there has been a satisfactory reduction in. the stored Btocks and the prospects seem to be favourable for a continuance of strong BBarkets. News of droughts in New South Wales and Queensland is also having a considerable effect and some large buyers are reported to be operating in anticipation of short supplies early in 1927. The multiple shops intend to raise the retail price of colonial butter from Is 5d a lb. to ls '7d next week, but it is not expected that tho advance will have any effect on consumption.