HOME MARKETS.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 916, 8 October 1879, Page 2

HOME MARKETS.

The New Zealand" Loan and Mercantile Agency Company's circular for August reports as follows of the home markets for. wool, tallow, and leather :— Wool. — On the first night there was a large attendance of Hjome and foreign buyers, both sections Being well represented. Competition was regular and fairly animated, at rates which, for merino wool, exhibited a maintenance of the average values current in the May- June sales. This description of wool, both washed and greasy, with few exceptions was the sublect of good demand, the slight weakness occasionally noticeable in the ..biddings being almost wholly confined to inferior parcels of clothing sorts. Cross-breds of line quality, though not perhaps quotable at the full rates^of last series, were still in request ; but the lower grades showed a decline of from id to Id per lb., in sympathy with the depreciated value of our home grown wool, which is in large supply. On the following night opening rates were found to role with little or no change. Some acoured Capes, however, were sold at about Jd. per lb. lower thun their closing prices of last series. A formidable obstacle to any marked im-. provement in prices as to the Bales progress appears in the prqbabiliiy that the English harvest is again likely to prove deficient, both in point of quantity and quality. It had been hoped that with an average yield of cereal produce in this country a much needed stimulus would have been given to business generally, under the influence of which ■ woollen manufacturing interests might have been, favorably promoted ; but from the latest reports from the agricultural districts it is now almost beyond doubt that those expectations may be considerably modified or altogether abandoned. Tallow. — For the four public sales which have been held since departure of last mail via San Francisco, 4475 packages of Australasian tallow were catalogued, of which 4091 were sold under the hammer. The demand throughout this period has been decidedly stronger, more especially for medium and lower qualities, which have been freely purchased for export. The finer descriptions also have sold more readily, and on the whole a more satisfactory business has been transacted than has been the case for some time past. The advance all round may be called 6d per cwt. Leather. — The demand has been good, the improved prices quoted in our last issue, by this rate being still maintained. Exporters continue to be the principal operators, the home trade buying comparatively little. Only one sale has been held, viz., that of the 25th ultimo, when 4136 sides were offered and 3668 sold.