FINANCE AND TRADE

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4302, 11 March 1901, Page 6

FINANCE AND TRADE

The Customs returns for the past week amounted to £20,500 10s 4d; the beer duty to £l7B Os 9d. The total for Saturday was £1783 10s 4d.

The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, report as follows:—At our fortnigntly wool and skin sale we offered about 100 halos and 20 bags wool and 1100 skins. There was a good attendance of fellmongors. The wool offered was of indifferent quality, and the bidding spiritless. Since last sale wo estimate than prices have receded from Id to fd per lb, more especially for rough and legstained crossbred. Locks and peieces were almost unsaleable. For sheepskins there was a fair demand for all long woolled and sound pelted, hut inferior aaid broken pelted lines were not wanted. Quotations— Wool, locks Jd to Ud per lb ; bellies and pieces, Id to 2 : Vd; coarse crossbred, on to 4d; logstained, 2d to Sd; Jambs from 3d to 3>d per lb. Sheepskins. —Irimo crossbred up to 4d and 41 d per lb; dead skins and hoggets, 2d to .-.d ; broken and damaged skins, lid to 2d: dry pelts, sound, up to Sd.eacb; dry pelts, mixed, from Id to 4d each. COMMERCIAL CABLES. PRESS ASSOCIATION. LONDON, March S. BANK OF ENGLAND RET CRN. The Bank of England return issued, for the week ending Wednesday, 6th March is as under :

! "Interest puyabla in May and November. * t Interest payable in January and July. J Interest payable In April and October, MONEY MARKET. Tlig market rate of discount for best throe months’ hills is \ lower, at 3 Jl-1G per cent. The Bank of England rate is 4 per cent., as against 4?, per cent, ou the 20th February,' and 5 per cent, ou the 6th February. COLONIAL AND OTHER PRODUCE. Wheat. —The markets are generally steady, but Paris and Berlin are weaker. Cargoes are neglected and unchanged. For Victorian off-coast cargoes, 30s 9d per quarter is asked. Sugar is weaker. Gor man boot, 83deg.', 3d lower, at 9s per cwt.; first mark, granulated, f.0.bl Hamburg, 6d lower, at 10s 10|d per cwt. Butter is slow of sale. Choicest colonial, 104; Danish is dull and unchangj od at 110 s. • Bradford Tops.—Business restricted. ’Prices unchanged'. ; 1 THE PRICES OF METALS. I Copper quotations are nominal. Spot, | unchanged, at £7O 12s 6d per ton ; ; three months’, 2s 6d higher, at £7l 5s 'per ton. > | Tin is firm. Spot, £ll 10s lower at £l2O-5s per ton three months’, 25s lower at £ll7 per top. Pig iron—Glasgow warrants, No. I cash, 4jd lower at 52s 9d per ton f.o.b. in Clyde. Lead, 12s 6d lower, at £l3 15s per ton. top el ter, 5s lower at £l7 2s 6d per ton. Silver—Bar silver is quoted at 2s 4jd per oz. . COAL EXPORTS. GREYMOUi’H, March 10. The coal export for the week was: Blackball Coal Companv 2210 tons 12 cwt coal; Brunner Coal Compnay, 2296 tons 9 swt coal, 7 tons coke and 4 tons 10 cwt bricks. WESTPORT, March 10. The coal output from Westport for last week was 10,044 tons 17 cwt, of which the Westport Coal Company shipped 9683 tons 9 cwt, and the Westport Co-opcra-tivo Company 361 tens' 8 cwt.

Issue Department. .-Jote issue ... £52,427,000 Gov. debt .. £11,016,000 Other securities . - 0.760,000 Gold.. .. 34 652,000 £52,427,000 £52,427,000 Banking Department. Proprietors' Gov. eeouri- , capital .. £14,653,000 ties .. 12,3Co,000 Public de- Other soposits .. 12,271,000 ouriliea .. ..2,71(,000 Ouher de- Notes .. SW.7b5.00u posits .. 33,678,000 Ooiu.. .. 1.062,000 Rest, 7-day and other bills .. 3,078,000 £70,480,000 £70,480,000 The leading items of the Bank of England return afford the following comparison; — This Dust Dost Week, Week. Year. £ £ J? Bullion .. .. 34,652,000 34,106,000 33,001,000 Reserve .. .. 25,427,000 25,031,000 23,897,000 Note circulation . • 28,602,000 38,1,03,000 28,798,000 Deposits .. .. 51,949,000 54,291,000 50,301,000 Proportion reserve ' ■ to liabilities .. 48'74 4194 4„,2o GOVERNMENT SECURITIES. The following are the latest quotations for Government securities, and a comparison with, those ruling last week; — 23 % Imperial Console Price- £ B. J. 98 IB 0 Variation. 15/- lower 4 % New Bouth Wales lie o o Unchanged 3J % Now South Wales 103 0 0 5/- higher 3 % New South Wales 5)8 15 0 25/- lower 109 0 0 Unchanged Si % Victorian .. .. 102 10 0 Unchanged Bi % South Australian 106 0 0 Unchanged 93 0 0 Unchanged 1 % Queensland 107 0 U Unchanged 8i% Queensland .. 102 11 0 Unchanged 4 % New Zealand* i 15 0 0 10/- higher Si % Now Zealand! 108 U 0 Unchanged 97 0 0 25/* lower 101 0 0 5/- higher 84 % Taomantatt 103 0 0 Unchanged