COMMERCIAL.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1288, 5 November 1896, Page 6

COMMERCIAL.

The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, reports as follows for the week ending 30th inst: —Wool —Encouraging reports still come to hand from England, and the market is reported firm and competition is good. Of course, no sales are in progress, and transactions are all by private sales. Locally there is a good enquiry. Sheepskins are in good demand, particularly for well-woolled crossbreds. Quotations are: Butchers’ green, extra prime, 5s 3d to 5s 8d; prime, 4s Gd to 5s ; medium to good, 3s 9d to 4s 3d each ; country dry skins, full woolled, s;}d to s:}d; extra prime, Gd ; good, 44d to 5d ; medium, 34d to 4:}d ; inferior and broken, lid to 3d per lb : pelts, 2d to Gd each. Hides—These are rather dull of sale, and prices are somewhat easier. Quotations are: — Heavy green ox, 16s to 17s; green cow, 7s to ,8s each; damaged and light station hides, Id to 2d per lb. Tallow. —Local quotations are:— Prime mutton, 15s to 15s Gd ; mixed medium, 14s to 14s Gd; inferior. 12s to 13s per cwt. Hemp—A good enquiry exists, and late values are well maintained. Quotations are, g.f.a.q., £lO 10s f.o.b. Wheat —The improvement reported last week has continued, and in consequence the millers have advanced the price of flour £2 per ton. In view of the outlook, we think prices must still further advance. We quote good whole fowl wheat 3s 64d to 3s 7d, sacks extra, ex store. Oats—There is steady demand at prices slightly in advance of last week’s quotations. Present values are 2s 2d to 2s 2Jd per bushel, sacks in, ex store. Maize—Demand is limited. Prices are 3s to 3s 2d, ex store, sacks in. Chaff—ls in very full supply, with poor enquiry, and prices have a weaker tendency. Quotations are 60s to 655, sacks returnable, ex store or wharf. Potatoes —A keen demand has been experienced during the past week. There are very few parcels offering. Quotations are 85s to 90s, sacks in, ex wharf. Messrs Levin and Co., Limited, have received from their agents, Messrs Dalgety and Co., Limited, the following telegram, dated London, 26th October: —“ The wool market is very firm, and tending upwards. Sales have taken place of good greasy crossbred fleece, of greasy Queensland wools, and of greasy merino fleece, at prices, on the average, id per lb higher than the closing rates of last series.” Messrs A. G. Taine and Co. report on their horse sale on Saturday:—Owing to the wet weather the attendance was small, and the entry also. The business done was of no great importance, and no guide to the market. There is still a really good demand for good draughts, which are very scarce, and we can see little prospect of getting any for this market for some time unless buyers are prepared to extend their limits very much. Express and spring-carters with some weight and activity in them will also sell well. For them we can get up to £lB, if of the right sort. Our sales, public and private, have been good:—Express horses, £l6 to £lB ; aged spring-cart horses, £B, £9 10s and £l2 15s; draughts, £l7 10s, for light sorts ; £25 for heavier, all aged. Matthew Henry, Palmerston North, reports : Owing to the show, combined with the alteration of date and hour of sale, the show of stock on 30tli and the attendance of the public was, as is usual in such cases, small. A few of the lots forward changed hands at the following quotations Cattle —Fat cows, £6 12s Gd : forward do, £2 17s Gd ; twoyear steers, £2 15s; yearling to 18-months mixed cattle, 30s to 32s Gd , springing heifers, £2 10s to £3 10s ; bulls, 20s to 50s. Pigs, 7s to £2 2s. Abraham and Williams will not hold a stock sale at Manakau on Wednesday, as was previously advertised, owing to A. G. Taine and Co. holding a sale there on that date. Messrs J. H. Bethune and Co. held a very successful sale on Monday at the residence of Mr C. E. W. Willeston, Burleigh, Brougham street, of some highclass household furniture. There was a large attendance, and excellent prices wore realised. Wanganui, October 28.

Freeman R. Jackson and Co.’s Wanganui stock report:—The bidding at our sale to-day was brisk, and we could have sold more stcck had it come forward. We cleared out all that offered, excepting ewes and lambs, the reserve being over buyers’ idea of value. Pigs were well competed for, and were better worth. Cattle —Fat cows, £4 2s; forward bullocks, XI ; 3-year-olds, X 3 10s : store cows, £2 10s ; heifers, X2 to £2 3s ; yearlings, 39s ; weaners, 15s Gd. Sheep—Forward wethers, 13s 8u ; stores, 11s ; fat ewes, ‘Js Gd to 10s 9d. Pigs—Large porkers, 20s ; porkers, 14s to 17s ; smaller pigs, 5s lid to 9s ; suckers, 3s. Christchurch, October 28.

Both entries and attendance were small at the Addington market to-day : —Fat cattle —223 head yarded. Steers brought £5 15s to £10; heifers, £5 to £8 ; cows, X 4 5s to X 7 17s 6d. Dairy cattle—Dull of sale; prices ranged from £3 to £7 10s. Store cattle —Nearly all the business done was transacted privately. Fat sheep—Entry small, and owing to inactivity of buyers for export (both factories being closed) values were left to butchers to frame. Freezing sheep were only purchased by speculators, who had to make allowance for three weeks’ feed,and in addition to an extra charge for freezing. Maiden ewes were almost entirely neglected. Butchers’ ewes and merinos, except at the commencement of the sale, showed a decline. The general range of

prices was:—Best freezing wethers, shorn, 11s Jo 13s 7d ; best maiden ewes, shorn, 10s to 11s Gd; best freezers in the wool, 14s 6d to 17s; best merino wethers, 11s 6d to 15s ; inferior, 6s Gd to 9s 6d ; best shorn fat ewes, 10s to 13s 3d ; medium do, 8s 6d to 9s 6d. Fat lambs—Large entry and prices fairly well maintained ; best lots, 10s to 13s ; medium, 7s to 9s Gd. Store sheep—Small entry and good competition for all forward sheep; shorn hoggets, 7s to 9s Gd; shorn 4 and 6-tooth wethers, 9s 6d to 11s 3d ; 2 and 4-tooths in the wool, mixed sexes, up to 14s lid; ewes and lambs, lGs. Pigs—Fair entry, and keen competition. For baconers, heavy baconers, 38s to 47s ; lighter, 28s to 375; porkers, 20s to 28s; stores, 9s to 21s ; choppers, 40s to 51s; porkers and baconers averaged 3£d per lb. ' > i* The few who hold wheat now are very firm ih ’ their demands, and as the price has advanced beyond the limit at which speculators can afford to operate, the business doing has been confined to the supplying of actual requirements, the only sale qf note reported being that 6f 700 sacks of prime milling at equal to 3s 9d. f.o.b. The better qualities of Oats are now being freely Ciiquired for for Home shipment and the local market has shown a better tone. Barley is being enquired for from the South, but prime malting samples are scarce. A further rise has taken place in potatoes, and 75s f.o.b. was paid yesterday for parcels for the North; Island and 60s is now the ruling price at country stations. During the past three months the export of potatoes from Lyttelton has averaged over 5000 Sacks per week. Oatsheaf chaff meets with very v little demand, and although large quantities have'' been exported during the past few weeks, these have been mostly old stocks. The fob lowing are current prices : —Wheat—Pearl (prime milling), 3s 7d to 3s 9d ; Tusoan, 3s 8d to 3s 9d} Hunter’s, 3s 9d; goodseoonds, 2s 9d to 3s, Oats—Cana* dians, 2s ; short feed, Is lid; Tartars,-, ls~~ lid; duns and Danish, Is lid. Barley—Malting, prime, nominal, 8s Gd to 3s 9d ; medium do, 2s 9d to 3s 4d; feed, 2s 3d. Beans (nominal), well saved, 2s 7d to 2s Bd. Peas—Partridge, 3s 3d. Flour —Millers quote roller, £lO ; stone, £9. Sharps, £3 10s ; bran, £2 15s ; oatmeal, £ll ; oatsheaf chaff, 40s ,at handy country stations for prime samples). Potatoes—Derwents, GOs at country stations. Grass, seed—Rye-grass (farmers’ lots), 2s 4d to 2s lOd J machine dressed, to 3s 9d ; heavy weight, 4s to 4s 3d; cocksfoot, farmers’ lines, 3d to 34d ; town machine dressed, 44d to 5d ; cowgrass, farmers’ lines, 4d to did; white clover, Gd to 84d; alsike, 5d to Gd. Dairy produce—Cheese, 3d to 4d ; loaf, 34d to 44d. Butter—Fresh factory, 9d ; prime dairy, ~6d to 7d; salt (in boxes), Gd. Bacon and hams, Gd. Auckland, October 28. The local millers have advanced the price of flour 10s per ton. London, October 29. At Mark Lane English white wheat realised 33s per quarter, and red wheat 325. Californian wheat is quoted in London at 335, and red winter, from New York, at 794 cents per bushel. The balance-sheet of Dalgety and Co., Limited, shows a profit of £93,865. A dividend of 8 per cent, has been declared, and £13,865 carried forward. The New Zealand and Australian Land Company has declared a dividend of 4 per cent. WELLINGTON MARKETS. M essrs Laeuy & Co. report current wholesale values as under : Hay and Corn Market.

£ s D. £ s. D. Feed barley ... ... 0 2 8 Maize ... ... ... 0 3 2 Oats, feed ., ... 0 Wheat, milling ... 0 2 2 to 0 2 4 4 0 Fowl Wheat ... ... 0 3 10 Rye Corn ... ... 0 3 3 Seed Barley ... ... 0 3 9 Hay, ton ... ... 4 0 0 to 4 10 0 Oaten, ton ... ... 3 10 0 Straw, ton ... 2 Chaff, oaten sheaf ... 3 10 0 5 0 Wheat, straw... ... 2 5 0 Potatoes. Potatoes .. ... 4 10 0 to 4 15 0 Kidneys ... ... 3 15 0 Brown River ... ... 4 15 0 Seed Derwents ... 4 10 0 Farsi and Dairt Produce. Milk, quart ... ... 0 0 3 Butter, fresh farm, lb 0 06 Butter, separator ... 0 0 10 Salt butter ... ... 0 0 7 Cheese ... ... ... 0 0 4 to 0 0 4* Loaf 0 0 4? Eggs, dozen (fresh) ... 0 Bacon, lb ... ... 0 0 9 0 5h Ham, lb ... ... 0 0 H Fowls, pair ... ... 0 3 6 Ducks, pair ... ... 0 4 6 Geese, pair ... ... 0 5 0 Turke3's, pair... ... 0 6 6 to 0 7 6 Flour Market. Roller flour ... ... 11 0 0 Pollard 4 0 0 Oatmeal ... ... 10 0 0 to 11 10 0 Bran ... ... ... 3 10 0 Seeds. Ryegrass, Farmers’ 4± lots ... ... 0 2 9 to 0 3 Ryegrass, Machine dressed ... ... 0 4 0 to 0 4 3 Cocksfoot, lb ... ... 0 0 3 £ to 0 0 6