COMMERCIAL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 10222, 3 December 1904, Page 3

COMMERCIAL.

The New Zealand) Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, report on the stock sale held at their Matawhero yards on Thursday last : — The attendance was larger than usual, attracted no doubt by the very large entry of cattle which had! been advertised, andJ which all) came forward. Biddfhi|; at the commencement of tlie sale of sheep was a little slack, but when buyers found tliat prices were not going to break down to any extent bidding became brilsker. Seeing that there lias been since last sale a rise in the London wool market tliere was no reason at any rate for woolly sheep to depreciate in price. Sheep : Our -entry comprised!, 636, of which all but 13 sold' under the hammer at following prices : Woolly sheep, twotooth, broken wool, 15s 6d 16s 7d ; wetters, 16s 6d' to 19s for a good line of four-tooth welliers. Shorn sheep : Fat ewes made lis 6d to 12s; b>t they I were for tlie most part diuggy ; ewes in lamb (percentage of lambs small), 13s 7d<; ewes wtrth good! lambs, all counted, 10s. Cattle : Our entry comprised 254, of which 212 sold under brisk competition at prices quite at par with, or perhaps slightly in advance of, previoiis sales' quotations. The Recent showery weather would no doubt, promote the growth of fern, and runholders realised, tlie necessity of liavine increased' cattle stocking in order to keep their country in perfect condition. The demand 1 established for young cattle, well bred, was very "brisk indeed, as also for good lines of station cows. Beef appeared neglected, the London pri-ces fully accounting- for this. It appears most probable that with mutton at its present fair standard 1 of value in London, tlie beef market must rise. Our quotations were as follow : Calves, from 55s to 65s for cattle about six months old ; eight to nine months, mixed sexes, 63s 6d to 655; yearling steers, 745; yearling lieifers, 72s to 755; springing heifers, £6 2s 6d ; cows and) calves, poor sorts, £5 to £6 10s ; dlaiiry cows, about £6; herd cows, from £4* 5s to £5 15s for ordinary sorts; andl w<<ll bred Shorthorn cows £6 5s to £6 10s. We sold a few bulls at from. £6 6s for dairy sorts, up to 14£ guineas for young Shorthorn bulls. A few more really good sorts could have been ditsposed' of. Pigs.— These were a small entry, weaners making about ss. Our next sale is fixed for the 15th of December, for which we invite entries. Messrs Williams and Kettle, Ltd, report:—We held our usual fortnightly sale of stock at the yards, Matawhero, on Thursday last. The entry of cattle was an exceptionally large one for the time of the vear. About the advertised number of 1000 head came forward', and we quitted l the whole with the exception of 55 at very satisfactory prices. The class of cattle liandled! during the sal,e was the best we liave yet yarded at Maiawh«ro. All classes, with the exception of beef w«r« 10s per head -higher than at our last sale; no doubt, due to the great growth of rough feed now in the country. In sympathy .with prices ruling in the English mark|et and the freezing companies not operating beef was 10s per head! lower. The day s quotations were as follow: Two-year-old steers £5 to £5 ss, yearlings £3 10s to £3 17s 6d, light beef cows £5 17s 6d, heavv b,^ef cows £6 17s 6d. rows in calf £6 to £6 ss, cows with small calves at foot £6 7s, Mght beef bullocks £6 6s to £6 10s, two-year-old heifers in low condition. £4 10s to £4 17s 6d, 18-monlhs steers £4 to £4 10s, -weaners up to £3. A nice line of 120 two^ear-old steers from Waipare station fetched £5 ; a good lot of 90 four and five-year-old! cows from Turihaua station realised' £6. Sheep : We yarded 2600, and cleared the lot at prices as under: 707 hit wethers 225, 650 store wethers 19s Id, 520 shorn two-tooth (mixed sexes) averaged 13s 3d, 200 full-mouth ewes in wool 16s 6d, a small line of fab ewes in wool 19s 4d. Other small lots soldi at prices satisfactory to the vendors. Our next sale will be held' on Thursday, the 15th inst., for which we are now booking entriles.