COMMERCE AND FINANCE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23002, 3 October 1936, Page 9

COMMERCE AND FINANCE

CHRISTCHURCH STOCK EXCHANGE THE WEEK’S ACTIVITIES (Special io Daily Times) CHRISTCHURCH, Oct 2. Apart from a slight increase In the * Interest in base metal producers, following the better prices of gold and other metals, there has been little activity in the investment markets in New Zealand this week. The uncertainty of the outlook for New Zealand industrials has not been cleared by the Bill before the House this week, and investors, if they have gleaned anything from the discussions, have probably come to the conclusion that returns from New Zealand concerns will be smaller. The Exchanges were open for only five days this week, Monday having been observed as a holiday. The turnover on the Christchurch Stock Exchange was slightly higher for the five days than it was for the full week before. The figures were £24,486, against £24,158, but there was no real strength in any market, except that for Government loans. „ . , The market for Government loans remained very firm, with far more buyers than sellers. The shorter dated loans were the more popular, and prices generally were higher. The 1937-40 issue was firm with sales at £lO2, and the 1943-46 issue with sales at £lO4 5s was 5s dearer. A sale of Heathcote County Council 4i per cent. 1942, was'made at £ 104. Fair business was done in the banking section, but on the whole values were weaker. E.S. and A. were done at £5 15s 6d and £5 16s, a slight decline from last week’s rates. National of Australasia at £7 and £7 Is, maintained the recent rates, but National ’of New Zealand, in which there ha? been little business recently, were down half a crown at £3. New Zealand had a sale at £1 18s 3d, the lowest level these shares have so far touched Goldsbrough Morts did not retain the rise recorded last week but New Zealand Farmers’ stock was dearer on the improved position shown in the accounts, otherwise the loan section was neglected. Only one stock in the brewery section was given any attention, and that was New Zealand, which had sales at £2 12s and £2 11s lid. which were fractionally weaker. Among the - , miscellaneous _ investments Australian stocks were given the greatest attention, but in general the trend of values was downward. Anthony Hordern remained about on • the level established last week. British Tobacco, in which there was some interest, were at the beginning of the week higher than in recent business, but later there was a recession. Both Broken Hill issues were firm, but there was little business in either Coles, which were quoted ex div, and rights. On Thursday they were firm, and Colonial Sugars maintained their price. Dunlops dropped a shilling. , ■ . , Ex div. Mount Lyells improved earlier in the week, but showed an inclination to come back yesterday. Mount Morgans improved sharply to a sale at 14s lOd on Thursday, but they came back yesterday to business down to 13s 9d. v , Woolworths (Sydney) had fair business and improved steadily, finishing at £5 7s 6d.

AUSTRALIAN STOCK EXCHANGES ■i ■‘ t _ _ ■'i i (United Press'Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) SYDNEY, Oct. 2. (Received Oct. 2, at 11 p.m.) The Sydney Stock Exchange was quiet, with a firm undertone. Gold mining shares were irregular, THE MORNING SALES £ s. d. Commonwealth Bonds—--3i per cent, 1948 .. ... MlO 0 4 per cent, 1938 .. •• 7 6 4 per cent, 1941 .. .. 102 7 6 4 per cent.. 1950 ... .. 101 0 0 Anthony Hordern .. .. 018 b Australian Glass •• | % ; Broken Hill Proprietary .. 317 6 Goldsbrough, Mort .. •. }lf ° Lustre Hosiery ...... } ° X Morris Hedstrom 1 o u ADDITIONAL SALES Comm. Bank of Australia .. 018 6 National Bank (£5 paid) ... 7 4 0 v,.- Colonial Sugar 43 10 0 Adelaide Steam 770 Australian Gas (A) .... ‘ 7 u British Tobacco £ * X Tooths • • •• ■ 216 0 Carlton Brewery a u Australian Glass f 13 b Morris Hedstrom ] ° “ Goldsbrough, Mort .... 114 « David Jones .. .. • • •• * ” N.S.W. Fresh Food .. ... 91/ Noyes Bros, (pref.) .. • • \ ■.* ° Broken Hill Pty. .. .. •• 317 9 Broken Hill Pty. (new) .. 217 9 North Broken Hill • • • • ?,2 « South Broken Hill .. •• 5 „ 2 Malim Nawar .;...• 9 0 u Tongkah Harbour .... J lB t Lady Shenton 2 A i Emperor .. .. 22 Mandated Alluvials .... 9l* a Irowat S I g* Koroere 2 ? 4 Tavua u 1 MELBOURNE, Oct. 2. Gold mining shares were irregular, while there was a good demand tor Zinc Corporations, with North and South Broken Hills weaker. g d E.S. and A. Bank... .. .. 516 0 National Bank (£5 paid) .. ] 4 0 National Bank (£lO pd.) •• 1| 8 0 Carlton Brewery .. .. • ■ « | " G. J. Coles 3 I" 0 Drug Houses •• •• /• :: }*2 Aust. Iron and Steel (pref.) 1 6 14 Electrolytic Zinc .. .... XXX Electrolytic Zinc (pref.) .. 2 8b Mount Morgan 1 q ini Mount Lyell .. . 11 North Broken Hill •• •• 9 " 2 South Broken Hill .. •• 517 u Zinc Corporation * ? X Emperor "7 % Loloma .. • • {.A X Sulphide Corporation .... 8 8 8 Myers .. }}S 2 Silverton Trams 8 J Waldas Shoes in 2 Yarra Falls 2 0 6 Upper Watut n 1 3 Irowat • • • • V o 7 General Motors 1 6 ‘

BEET SUGAR

(United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) LONDON, Oct. 1. „ Beet sugar, 4s 33d. HAY’S, LIMITED PROFITS AND DIVIDEND INCREASED A satisfactory comparison of business is noted in the balance sheet of Hays, Ltd., Christchurch. Net profit has risen to £2935 from £2032 last year, and though a good deal has been spent on improvements, and new capital brought in, dividend has been raised from 5 to 6 per cent. Transfer to income tax reserve is £525 this year, against £3OO last year. Last year £2OO was written off preliminary expenses, leaving this item at £245. This year the item has disappeared altogether. The directors, in their report, state:—“The accounts show a net profit for the year of £2935 3s Bd, which, with the amount carried forward from last year, makes a sum of £4458 0s 3d available for distribution. Your directors recommend allocating this sum as follows: —To pay a dividend at the rate of 6 per cent on the paid-up capital, £ 1 <77 12s ad. transfer to income tax reserve. £szo; tarried forward to next year, £2l jo 7s lOd.”

LOCAL AND OVERSEAS MARKETS.

THE SALES TAX HOPES FOR REMOVAL COMPLETE ABOLITION WANTED The reiteration by Mr Savage of the Government’s intention to remove the sales tax has caused traders to speculate upon the manner in which this will be carried out—Whether the tax will be removed in its entirety, or whether it will first be reduced and then, after a period at a lower rate, finally abolished. On the whole (the New Zealand Herald says) businesses have settled down to a routine in the collection of the tax and, although it entails a considerable amount of extra work, the necessary adjustments are not now found so irksome as when it first came into operation. However, little support can be found for it, and trading concerns would be glad to see the tax go. On account of the cost of collection, however, traders are hopeful that if, and when, the Government carries out its intention, the tax will be removed in its entirety. In Australia recently, in accordance with a general reduction in taxation, the sales tax was reduced by 5 per cent, to 4 per cent., and companies were quick to point out that while the lower rate was welcome it did not give any relief to the cost of collection. Even at Canberra it was officially admitted that the complexity of the sales tax machinery was so great that minor anomalies were often unavoidable. In this connection it is pointed out that the exemptions greatly complicate the work involved in the collection of the tax. For that reason business men in many quarters would prefer a turnover tax without exemptions to a sales tax based on the present complicated system of exemptions. These are a never-ending source of difficulty, both for traders and the taxation authorities. AUSTRALIAN TRADE EXPORTS TO NEW ZEALAND In view of the possibility of reopening trade consultations between Australia and New Zealand the Melbourne Age states that interest attaches to figures received relating to Australian exports to the Dominion. These figures show that, on the average, the balance of trade between the two countries has been two-to-one in Australia’s favour. Actually, during the past 20 years, Australia has exported to New Zealand goods worth £47.000,000 over and above the value of the goods she has imported from the sister Dominion. Exports from Australia to New Zealand have amounted to £90,000,000 and exports from New Zealand to Australia to £43,000,000, The peak year for exports from Australia to New Zealand was in 1920, when the total was £10.500,000. However, that was extremely high for one year, and was accounted for probably by the filling of orders placed in Australia, but delayed during the war Otherwise, the volume has varied from £6,483,000 in 1921 to £2,285,000 in 1931 That Australia has steadily increased its exports to New Zealand since 1930 in spite of the loss of a fruit trade worth £200,000 a year, is due to the expansion of secondary industries in the Commonwealth. In iron and steel goods, apparel and glassware, Australia has made inroads into the United Kingdom trade with New Zealand, A less noticeable increase in New Zealand’s exports to Australia is due to larger sales of coarse wools, hides, and timber. TIN PRODUCTION MINERS DESIRE CONTROL “A further period of the control of the output of tin is desired by tin miners the world over and also by the Governments in countries producing tin ore.” said the chairman of the Tin Producers’ Association, Sir W. Harry Peat, at the annual meeting in London recently. The advantage that it had been to all tin-mining companies, he

MINING NEWS LAWSON’S FLAT SLUICING The Lawson’s Flat Gold Sluicing Company, Ltd., reports that the return for the two weeks ended on September 30 was 520 z lldwt of retorted gold. GOLDEN SANDS DISPUTE MEN OUT ON STRIKE According to the ultimatum Issued to the employers, the employees of the Golden Sands Dredging Company stopped work on Wednesday last and intimated that they would continue to strike until their demands for higher wages were met. The miners are not prepared to accept the terms of the agreement reached at the Conciliation Council and have enlisted the sympathy of employees on other dredges, including the Barrytown and Rimu dredges. No counter proposals have been made by the employers, who consider that both sides should hold to the agreement reached at the Conciliation Council. Nothing will be done by the employers about the re-opening of the mine until next week, as a meeting of miners will be held to-morrow at which the men might change their attitude. In the meantime the mine manager has been instructed to adhere to the rates of pay provided in the agreement and the men were paid to the end of the month, TALISMAN DUBBO RETURN The Talisman Dubbo Gold Mining Company reports that 22i? tons of ore were treated at the Golden Dawn battery for an approximate realisation of £231. NEW GABRIEL’S GULLY COMPANY The secretary of the New Gabriel’s Gully Gold Mining Company reports that, since the change in working the claim on April 14, a total of 121 oz of gold has been recovered from about five-eighths of the paddock. The manager deemed it unsafe to clean up the remainder of the paddock on account of the huge amount of conglomerate which is liable to come away at any moment. The movement of the hill, which is the result of the present sluicing operations, will provide an enormous amount of material to be treated by the nozzles. The gold return, taking into account the time occupied, is much better than the results obtained from the previous mining by the present company, and, considering that there must be a fair return left behind in the bottom uncleaned. the prospects are much more reassuring. MOUNT MORGAN RETURNS (Per United Press Association) WELLINGTON, Oct. 2. The following is a copy of a cable received by the New Zealand Stock Exchange Association from Mount Morgan, Limited:— The production report for the four weeks ended on September 30 is as follows:—Ore mined, 26,090 tons; concentrator treated, 24,000 tons, assaying 3.43dwt of gold, and .70 per cent, of copper; concentrates produced, 881 tons, containing 2671 ounces of gold and 146 tons of copper. KING SOLOMON RETURN (Per United Press Association) INVERCARGILL, Oct. 2. The return at the King Solomon mine for eight days’ work was 360 z.

said, was so obvious that it was not necessary to point it out. Consumers of tin had had the benefit of stable prices, and this was of great assistance to manufacturers using large quantities. Shares in tin-mining companies had not responded in a proper manner to the prosperous conditions existing in the industry. This was due to the feeling of uncertainty as to what would happen if a further period of control were not arranged. In effect the periods of control in the past had been far too short to establish firmly the confidence that was necessary. The association was of the opinion, he continued. that the next period of control should be for not less than seven years. The chairman considered that the trouble about Siam was due to the liberal manner in which she was treated in regard to the quota allotted her in the first agreement. He felt sure that if it had been anticipated at that time that the demand for tin would have fallen to the low figure it subsequently did, the quota then given to Siam would never have been agreed to. , If the matter were referred to the tin miners in Siam, the Government of that country would find that there was an overwhelming majority in favour of accepting the terms offered by the International Tin Committee, sooner than face the terrible consequences that would inevitably befall the tin-mining industry in that country if international control were not renewed at the end of the year.