THE BREADSTUFFS AND PRODUCE MARKETS

Otago Witness, Issue 2856, 9 December 1908, Page 20

THE BREADSTUFFS AND PRODUCE MARKETS

- - -Friday. London cablegrams to hand at the beginning of the week report the wheat markets quiet and practically unchanged. There have been no sales of cargoes cabled during the week. Under date, London, October 21, "Beeav bohm" reviews the wheat position as follows: — "The market, without being active, has shown rather more confidence this week; the nramess of the American markets, in spite of the .enormous increase in the visible supply, and tie anxiety felt in regard to tha Argentine crop may be said to have combined to bring about this increased confidence. The shipments to Europe, it ie true, continue quite large, and since August 1 may now be said to have been about equal to the estimated reguirementa, but it is felt tha* later in the season it may not be so easy to obtain what ,s required , unless the Argentine crop should prove again to be a superabundant one, of which there is some doubt, of which we are reminded by the frcsts reported during the present week, which may easily have done some damftage, the extent of which it is, however, impossible yet to judge. "The following statement which efeo-ws the' actual total shipments of wheat and flour from each country during the past two seasons, ended July 31, with the estimated surplus in the present season in certain -of these .countries, will serve to bring home to us how serious a factor ia tb© Argentine crop- — . „ Total Sni^KEjrrs. (Wheat and Floxtr) -raoic the Various CoTnrmnes.

-as we &aye explained in previous reviews, th« requirements of the importing countries this eearon are much larger than the actual- hnporte which took place last season, and which were only made to suffice by * very large 4drain upon reserve stocks in the various countries. For the present season, indeed, we estimate that the world's import requirements will amount to 67,000,000 quarters, including. s9,ooo,ooo quar. ters for Europe and 8.000.000 u,iia,r&ers lor non-European countries. The tabular 'statement which we give above indicates that about 36,500,000 quarters are to be expected from the countries named, leaving about 30,000,000 quarters to be obtained from the Argentina, Australasia, and India. This will „give an idea of how much depends, in regard to the future course of price?, upon the new crops in these tlrree countries) and will help to explain the sensitiveness of £he market to reports and Humours from Argentina, whose crop it will, of course, he impossible to estimate for some considerable period yet." There is no change in the ContmonweaMi quotations. In Sydney new wheat is quoted at 3s lOd, in Melbourne at 3s 9d, and in Adelaide at 3s ltJd, these prices being for January-February delivery. Proportionately higher rates are asked for December delivery. Following are extracts from Town and Country Journal of 25th ult. : — As a general rule, the sale of goode at auction is an excellent test of true v&lue, anid also, as a rule, the Sydney railway auctions are generally a safe criterion a3 to the value of chick wheat by the truck or part truck. There is, however, an annual exception, and this is furnished every November by the auction sales of the firet few trucks of wheat of the season. There is usually a scramble among the buyers to secure these, and fancy prices are usually paid. A report then gains credence among the New South Wales wheat growers that these fancy prices represent the value of new milling wheat in Sydney for the opening of the campaign. iiast week new wheat was auctioned: in Sydney at 4s 7d, 4s 7id, and 484 8 8d a

"Time will tell" is an. «Ad saying, and when the Lawrence-Gillies Milking: Machines were first plaoed on the market folk used to say "Time will, tell." Well, time lias told, and to-day the L.K.G-. Machine is more widely used and appreciated than *\ec rx.foie. S. Turley, Esq., Waeminga, ■ante 1 -: — "I ha.c pleasure in stating that «ff-ei a continuous summer and winter i-«o of i^e LKG. Milking Machine since Ist Sept-amber, Jt>vs, I am thoroughly satisfied v.i h the cTecti vnenese and general working) of iiv .i v iohino." Full particulars will be son' pest free. — J, B. MacEwAn, and Co. LtJ }. Sol;- Agr;at«, Dunedio. " 11*

bushel, and 4s 9d was paid privately for some wheat for which an offer of 4s Bid was refused at auction. It is a frequent custom for the first trucks of the season to be cut up among: the buyers, the whole . of the grain being for use as chick wheat. This November, for the fourth summer in. ! succession, there is A marked absence of second grades of new or old grain on the market, and poultry owners have mostly no option but to buy milling standard. As soon as it became known in the country diatriote that wheat was at fancy prices in. the metropolis, immediately the great bulk of the farmers declined to sell their small lots of spot old wheat, or to sell forward their crops of new. Many of the farmers were further bewildered by a section of irresponsible agents who toured the country and prophesied new wheat was going to touch 5s or 6s a bushel in Sydney within *». few days. Such predictions are issued with a view of inducing business, but the damage and inconvenience resulting to the responsible and solid members of the breadstuff trade are serious. This week commenced with the auction of larger quantities of new wheat (for chick wheat) at the Sydney railway, with the result that prices ranged from 4s 2d to 4s 4£d a bushel, as compared with the top price last week of 4b 9d. Milling lines -of new wheat (December delivery) were freely offered this week , at equal to -4s 3d (Sydney). Old milling wheat, being scarce, has been worth 4s 4d to 4s Sd (Sydney) in milling lines, which is rather above -the usual excess at this time of year of /old wheat values over the new. «Just on the eve of general ripening and harvesting, a difference of a penny a bushel is quite sufficient. However, very little old wheat is left unsold on farm, and it is still essential tor the millers to have old wheat to grist, as several weeks must elapse before the bakers will find the Hour from new grain sufficiently mellow to bake by iteelf. Rather more- than a third of the whole wheat left unsold in New South Wales is represented by the parcel stored with the Farmers' and Settlers' Co-opera-tive Company, and the final disposition of this grain has not yet been determined by the court. Several parcels of old South Australian wheat have been imported during the last 10 days for some of the Sydney mills. The recent showers will help the latesown wheat crops in the south and centre of New South Wales. Harvesting is well advanced in the north, and there any duration of wet weatiher would bleach the standing grain. The northern crops have so far yielded well, though there are some isolated! patches where the growth as been indifferent, and in some localities damage has been done by storms, a few wheat fields being laid by high winds. New South Wales farmers should note the weakening tendency of th«. Sydney wheat market, due partly to importations from Adelaide and Melbourne, and partly to the prospect of early deliveries Of new wheat on a large- scale. It is evident £rom the continued searcitv of offerings in the local market that the whole of the available* 1 wheat is in sight ; and there is a tendency to continued firmness. Some business ie reported on North Island aocount at 4s 6d, f.0.b., 6.i., or equivalent to 4s 4£d, ex store, Timaru. In addition one or two small lines have been offering at 4s 3d to 4s 3£d, on trucks, northern stations, for red chaff and Tuscan; end up to 4b 4d for velvet. By going up as far north as Ashburton it is possible to do business at 4s 3d. It 16 known that one or two decent lines in South Canterbury are being held for 4s 6d, on trucks, but it is a question whether, co far as North Island *nd Otago bupsra are concerned, it would not be better to impoin from Australia than pay this advance. More especially since failing an advance in the price of fiour milters are making little or ro profit. i There is no chick wheat obtainable locally, | And for medium milling 4s 6d, f.0.b., i 3 heiug asked, or 4s 4£d to 4b sd, ex store. , A fair demand h*s sprung up for brar. i on Auckland aocount, and the price has ! been advanced from £3 5a to £3 ICs pt-r ! ion. The association's tariff stands : —" : Bran, £4 15s for local orders and £4 10s, ■ f.0.b., for shipment; pollard, £6, both for j local orders and for shipment. There 1 is no change in the price of flour, i •which is selling freely. The association's • tariff is as follows : —Sacks, £10 15s; 100' a, f fill; 50'b, £11 10s; 25's, £11 15s. The ; shipping price is £10 10s, and the Invercargill price fill. The oat market continues weak and lifeless, and it appears exceedingly doubtful whether any recovery will take place be- { tween now ar.sd the marketing of the new \ eroiJ, especially as there is not any pro- i bability of a further export demand. At the end of September ifc was estimated that there wero 344,000 sacks of oats in the Dominion, and present stocks are roughly bupposed to lotal about 200,000. The Devon will find spsitv for only some 10,000 sacks for We«t of England ports at a 20s freight, although nearly double thiu quantity wa? | offering ; and should aiiy more space be | available in any other yes-el it will only be at a higher freight— 22s 6d or 255. The sale of a line of auns and Danish is roported at Is 6d, f.0.b., s.i., but the current quotation for B grade sparrowbills i*> lfe 8d to Is B£d, f.0.b., s.i.; Is 9d for B grade Gartons, and up to Is lOd for A grarlo Gartons, which are very scarce. But at these prices there 1 is only a small demand. For good fed oats Is 6d, ex store, is the ruling price. The price of oatmeal remains at £10 ICs j>er ton. Pearl barley is quoted at £17. Butter.— The immediate local effect of the 'drop in the price of butter in the Home market is that dairy pats have receded Id per Ib and dairy bulk na« suffered similarly. Quotations are : Dairy pats, 7d ; dairy bulk. 84 d to 9d; T. and P. pets, Is OJd; T. and P. bulk, le. Cheese, 6id to 6|d ; Akaroa, ?id. Chaff.— Sales are difficult to make at late Tatea, owing to large consignments coming forward, and also to the fact that holders are carrying full stocks. The shipping demand is very slight, and indications point to a further decline. Quotations: Oaten eheaf, £3 to £3 2s 6d; medium to good, ■£2 10e to £2 12s 6d; light and discoloured, £& upwards (sacks extra). Potatoes. — Prime lots command an adVance on rates of I*at week, and are worth i£4 15s to £5; medium, £2 10s to £3. New J jiotatoes: Peninsula grown, 2d per Ib; j Auckland, lid. ! Eggs.— Market fairly well supplied, ll£d j per dozen. I Bacon.— Rolls, 9£d; sides, 83d; hams. 9d ■to 9id; prim© bacon pigß, up to 1601b. sid; fce&Vy weights, 4d to Sq. Poultry,— Gfoc-d inquiry for good-condi-itioned. Hens, 3s (cfooa inquiry) ; roosters. 5s 6d; turkeys— gobblers &d to 9, d. hens 6d

per Ib; ducks, 4s 6d to 6s 6d ; geese, 4s to ss. Onions, 10s per cwt.

o.*7uu-u«7. -i*nj<-uo. J.3UO-U4. t Qrs. Qrs. Estimated. U.S., America . . 16,500 20,625 Canada .. .. .. 7,000 5,940 Hußsia 7,000 7,600 Rouraania, Bulgaria, • etc - . 5,000 3,500 Argentina • .. .. ? 15 soo ?ld»»? ld »» . ? 2,250 Australasia .... ? 2 250 Sundries .. .... '1,000 1,750 Total .. .. li^sQrs. 18,000 5,810 11,750 - 10,750 13,500 3,775 3,75» 1,600 68,935 Total European imports . . 52,250 58,750