CANTERBURY MARKETS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2569, 10 June 1903, Page 21

CANTERBURY MARKETS.

Christchurch giain and produce report (Lyttelton Times, 6th inst.) — Locally the tone of the wheat market is easier, although the quantity offering is very limited. An odd line of 500 sacks of Tuscan changed hands at 3s lOJd at Ashburton station. Freight by the direct liners ha 3 beer reduced tc 15s per ton to London; but it is not expected that this will have any influence on the .market, as, even at '.he reduced rate, it is out of the question to ship wheat to the Old Country at present prices. Merchants having fulfilled South African orders for oats, have reduced their limits, but as Canterbury farmers are content to hold their stocks, business continues restricted. In the meanlime, Australian orders are being filled from the south, where prices rule lower than they do here. It is Dot certain, however, that Australian buyers secure any matenal advantage in obtaining supplies from the south at lower rates, as the variation between the standard grades in. Canterbury and in Southland is very marked. One prominent merchant has stated that Canterbury B grade is worth 2d per bushel more tha,n Southland D grade, anc'^js, in fact, quite equal, if not superior to, Southland A grade. The freight on oats by the dnect hneis to London has been reduced to 20s per ton, but, as in the case of wheat, the reduction is not hke'.y to lead to business with the Old Country under existing conditions The be=t offers obtainable fiom London are 19s per 3201b for mi'ling dcscuptions. The cost of shipping to London, including freight, insurance, exchange, and commission, may be stated. at about 4s 6d for 3'201b, leaving 14s Bd, equal to 1" lOd per bushel, f.0.b., without making any allowance for loss in weight, or for aibitration as to quality, under which ?a!es have to be made In Partridge peas a fair expoit trade is being done with Melbourne. Import entries at th.it port for the week ending May 23 included 50 bags Tasmaman peas and 86 bags from I\ew Zealand On May 30 over 300 bags arrived from New Zealand. The market on that date was fiun, owing to ihe ri^e in greys in Tasmania. Quotations were — Hand threshed duns 4s 8d to 4s 9d for good to prime sample, medium, 4" 7Jd , machine, 4s 7d for good sample , gTey=, 4s lfld. Canadian Voider beans, 9s. Deiwent potatoes are 'till selling at £2 10i- per ton, but early varieties have advanced, and now command up to £4 per ton. Onions are unchanged, and it is interesting to note that a small lot Ins been '•ent from Me'bourne to New Zealand, probably for a Dunedin ordei In this connection it may be mentioned that shipping freights from Melbourne to Dunedin for onion > are less than the railway charges from Christrhurch to Dunedin There are m M*'buurne considcrab'e stocks of med.um and inferior oiiions for which there is no demand. Ihe cocksfoot market is firmer, as there is a feeling gaining ground that heavy samples are likely to be scarce. In da'ry produce butter continues to be plentiful owing to heavy stocks held in the North I«land. and m consequence prices remain considerably lower than is usual at this time of year. Concerning this market the P\dn<\v Mail of May 27 has the following —Butter is less, fiinily he'd than was the case a week age. A potent factor was the diooping tendency of the Melbourne market and the fear in consequence that imports from that quarter would be resumed This has actually taken place, homo f-mall shipments having anived towards the close of the week. Some hundred* of boxes have also b"en received fiom New Z:al?nd. It is xpected that the local market «: 1 hold its own, and that no slump will take place till spring, though the Victorian situation may pc-sibly prevent ? further rise. This, however, is pure conjecture, and in this connection the New Zealand market may later on play a mere important part. Titnaru graic market CChr=ti hurch Pr<">s, 6th mst.) —There is little iresh to report since last week. Prime velvet -wheat is in .strong denial. H and southern inii]<.'n are now operating on the Timam market for it, ns southern ■wheat is on the soft side Velvet is worth Ts lOd to 3s lOJd, Tuscan 3* lOd, ard led rhaff 3s 9d, on trucks, country stations. Fowl wheat is worth 3« 8d f.o.b. The maiket for oats remams firm, and all offering is readily bought at Is 7d to Is 7\d for Danish, Is 7d to Is 8d for duns Is 8d for Canadians, ?nd Is 8d to Is 9d for Gartons. These pricr-s are on trucks, country stations, within a radius of 12 ini'c» The market for b.irlev is veiy v cak. 2s 6d bcins? the top puce < '■' r.> a frr feed, while malting is neglected 'Ihe put i'o markri ib i". a very er-otic state, pm.i-> P.n.'auun x in m i.2 to 12 12= Cd per ton. S,ik= die few aid frn between, and growers arc not i^cir'ed »n accept present i.n<^s. Gereially -newkn c th' 1 croo i« di-Appointin?. «o much =o tL.it »r tu» pun.i r^ v.lio -o'd m pctvavcp row fivl tl -t thf-v w " not have -i fricent to f.H accent, d o\oci<° Fkur is worth Id 10s to £10 p«r to:l - br.in -'• r° U lard £5 10s to £6 and oatmeal £10 Ids to £11.

Tcmuka produce market (Cnris:church Prp == , 6th ]'. = '.) — Thrre was not mif'i durqe in the prim ml produce market dining the werk. SrllerV ideas arc f>t 11 .ibove wh.it it :* po?sib.e for buyers to do bu = 'ne<sS op mv vcrv cxterpivc line 1 -. "Wheat rrman » firm with small cfirrirge. There is lrquiry for ynod pear', ujtl velvet, vhirli arr> still in ehoit Mipi>!y A few sma'l lines of Hunter- hd\c Idii p1.'..-J locally for nulls toulh oi Dui-c-din. a-t 3= &d

on trucks at Temuka. Offerings are falling off somewhat as farmers are sending into store rather than accept present prices. Osts are firm, but buyers are not inclined to advance prices, consequently only small business is passing. As shippers have stocks sufficient for loading early boats there is only a very small quantity of barley offering, and prices aro nominal. Potatoes are not offering so freely, but stocks in merchants' hands are sufficient to keep the market steady, there being at present no outside demands except for early rose seed, true to name, for which there is a possibility of >.'.oing business in Sydney. Prices current aie about as follows — Wheat, velvet and peail, 3s 9d to 3s lOd, Tuscan, 3s 9d ; Hunter's, 3s Bd. Oats: Canadian, Is Sd to Is 9d ; short feed, Is 8d to Is B^d , duns and Danisji, Is 7d to Is Sd, at country stations. Grass seed.— There is practically rone offering. Clovers are still m stacks, but farmers intend threshing out early, machines having practically fin!=h£d the autumn gram threshing. Oatshoaf chaff and other lines remain without change, and practically no business is passing. The New Zealand Loan ai:d Mercantile Agency Company (Limited) held its regular auct.on sa'e of gram and produce last Friday afternoon, at its Christchurch,gram warehouses, when a catalogue of about 2000 sacks were offered. There was a fairly good attendance of the trade, but b dding was occasionally slack, ar.d a good number of lot? had to be passed in, as owners' resenes were not reache.l. Competition was devoted chiefly to really good lots of oats and wheat, while chaff, barley, and potatoes were neglected. Inferior lots of oats and mixed seconds wheat showed a considerable fall on the prices bid at last sale. The range of priced was as follows- — Wheat, good sound, 3s lOd to 3s lid es stcre; wheat, whole fowl, 3s 4d to 3s 8d ; wheat, seconds and broken, 2s sd to 2a lOd. Oats, heavy Canadians, Is lid; outs, heavy feed, Is 9Jd to Is 101 d; oats, light and. inferior, Is 5d to 13 7d. Barley, feed, 2s 3d to 2s lOd. The exports of grain and produce from Lyttelton for last week included the following lines: — 2871 sacks wheat, 1269 sacks and 2388 bags flour, 10,166 sacks oats, 25 sacks meal, 165 sacks malt, 1392 sacks bran, 209 sacks sharps, 235 sacks pollard, 6038 sacks chaff, 510 sacks peas, 73 sacks beans, 2029 sacks potatoes, 13 sacks, 329 bag 3 and 195 gunnies onions, 76 sacks seed and 1975 bales straw. Out of the foregoing 4200 sacks of oats were for South Africa, 15 sacks wheat for Vancouver, 22 sacks seed for Victoria, British Co'umbia, and the following lines for Australia- — 3842 sacks oat», 1271 sacks braai, 50 sacks pollard, 1699 sicks chail, 310 sacks peas, 1366 sacks potatoes, 40 sacks seed, and 1595 bales straw. The remainder of the exports were for New Zealand ports.