COMMERCIAL

Southland Times, Issue 19125, 18 December 1923, Page 2

COMMERCIAL

DAIRY PRODUCE. LONDON MARKET DECLINING. The National Mortgage & Agency Co., Ltd., has received the following cable from its principals, Messrs A. J. Mills & Co., Ltd., London: —-Butter market: Current quotations, 212/- to 214/-. Prices are declining. Cheese is quoted at 106/- for white and 108/- for coloured. Prices are declining. TALLOW. LONDON MARKET ACTIVE. The New Zealand Loan & Mercantile Agency Co,, Ltd., has received the following cablegram from their London house : “We quote present spot values for the following descriptions: Fine mutton, 47/3 per cwt; good beef, 43/6 per cwt; mixed, 38/6 per cwt The market is aetve.” STOCK EXCHANGE. YESTERDAY’S CALL-OVER. At yesterday’s meeting of the Invercargill Stock Exchange a sale of Howard Smith shares, on December 15, at 51/6 was reported. Quotations were as follow: Bank of Australasia, s.. £l3. Bank of New Zealand, s. 52/3. , New Zealand Coal and Oil, s. 3/-. Westport Coal, s. 57/6. National Insurance, s. 76/3. New Zealand Insurance, b. 28/9. Standard Insurance, b. 38/3. New Zealand and River Plate, b. 21/-. New Zealand Refrigerating (10/- paid), b. 10/6, s. 11/3. Southland Frozen Meat (£1 ord.), b. 32/-, (10/- ord.) b. 16/-; (£1 pref.) b. 32/-. Huddart Parker (ord.), s. 42/6. Union Steam Ship Co., b. 20/3. Bruce Woollen Mills, s. 36/-. Milburn Lime & Cement, b. 36/-. New Zealand Drug, b. 66/-. New Zealand Milk Products, b. 24/6. New Zealand Paper Mills, b. 22/6. Otago Daily Times, b. 61/6. War Bonds, 1930, b. £96 15/-. Isscribed Stock, 1938, s. £97 10/-. War Bonds, 1938, b. £96 15/-. Inscribed Stock, 1939, s. £97 10/-. War Bonds. 1939, b. £96 15/-. P.O. Bonds,' 1927, b. £97 15/-.* P.O. Inscribed Stock, 1927, L. £97 15/-. P.O. Inscribed Stock, 1929, b. £97 10/-. Soldiers’ Settlement Loan Bonds, 1933, b. £lOO 15/-. Soldiers’ Settlement Loan Inscribed, b. £lOO 12/6. THE SHARE MARKET. YESTERDAY’S TRANSACTIONS. DUNEDIN, December 17. Sales: Wilson’s Portland Cement, 28/6; New Zealand Inscribed stocks, 1926, £lOl. Sales reported: Electrolytic Zinc, 28/3; Bank of New Zealand, 50/-. WELLINGTON, December 17. Sales: New Zealand Inscribed, 1939, £96 17/6; New Waiotahi (contrib.), 6d. Sales reported: Inscribed Stock, 1938, £97; Union Bank, £l4 17/6; Huddart Parker Co., £1 0/7; Howard. Smith Co., £2 11/6. CO-OPERATIVE CONTROL. WOOL COMMITTEE’S ACTION. (Per United Press Association.) "WANGANUI, December 18. In discussing the action of the Wool Committee in regard to the Wanganui wool sale, Mt W. J. Polson (President of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union I, stated: “I am generally favourable to co-operative control because I believe it is in the best interests of the growers. I also think that some measure of- control would be beneficial in the wool industry as brokers inform me there frequently is slackening off in bidding when orders are filled. The larger the offering the sooner the slackening off takes place. It is one thing to control the industry when there is an authorised mandate from the producers concerned, but another to attempt control without it. A Wool Committee was set up by the Pro- , ducers’ Committee three years ago, when ' the slump was at. its height, to assist Bawra to stabilise wool prices. It was a I sub-committee to the Producers’, and reported to" it. As the producers have not. met for ‘five years, I think the Wool Committee has a questionable claim to repreGRAIN AND PRODUCE. THE DUNEDIN MARKETS. Messrs Donald Reid and Co., Ltd. (Dun-* edin), report as follows: Oats. —The continued dry weather has hardened up the market, and stocks in store are about exhausted. We quote: A Gartons, 3/-; B Gartons, 2/10; undergrade, from 2/- (sacks extra). Chaff.-——Prime is always in demand, and anything coming forward is immediately snapped up. Medium quality is hardest to quit, and there is no demand for inferior. We quote: Prime oaten sheaf, £5 7/6; medium to good, £4 to £4 15/-; light and inferior, £2 10/- to £3 10/- (sacks extra). Wheat—Millers are still operating at ruling rates, viz., Tuscan, 5/31; Hunters 5/SJ; arrl velvet, 5/7 1. Good whole fowl wheat keenly inquired for at 5/1 per bushel (sacks extra). Potatoes. —New ones are coming in fairly {t” 1 ?- . , We quote; Lo, ' al > to ‘ ld per lb: North Island-grown, to 2d. Messrs Dalgety and Co., Ltd. (Dunedin) report as follows: Oats.—Very few lines are coming forward and values are unaltered. We quote: A Gartons, 3/-; B Gartons, 2/10; undergrade, from 2/- per bushel (sacks extra) Fowl Wheat..—Prices remain firm, and any lines of good whole fowl wheat coming on the market are readily saleable at up to 5/1 per bushel, ex store. Chaff —Prime oaten sheaf is in short supply, and is keenly inquired for. We quotePnme oaten sheaf, £5 7/6; good to best feed, £4 to £4 15/-; inferior, £2 to £3 10/per ton (sacks extra). per cwt. The market ic active.” TIMARU WOOL SALES. HIGH PRICES MAINTAINED. TIMARU, December 17. 1 he first sale of the Timaru wool season opened this morning in the presence of a lull bench of buyers, representing all interests local and overseas. The catalogue is a large one, containing 13,661 baleieompared with 8382 bales offered last year’ the difference being accounted for by 'better shearing conditions during the last six weeks. The wool throughout came forward m commendable condition, and from the outset it was plain that the buyers were intent on business, limits being unusually elastic, and bidding throughout spirited Values' were largely on the basis of the Christchurch sale last week, the range of prices being:—Merino, 23d to 28}d: Corriedale, 194 d to 27]d; halfbred, to 274d-three-quarterbred, 11 d to 234 d; crossbred’ lid to 20Jd; Romneys, 13d to 16d Pieces -Mfrino 16}d to 19d; Corriedale, 20d to 2-icl, halfbred, 9id to three-quarter-bred, 9d to 19d; crossbred, 9ld to 14Jd Bellies—Halfbred, lO.fd to 194 d; crossbred,' 10jd to 14Ad; three-quarterbred, HJd to 164 d; merino, 16d to 20d. Locks—Merino, 124 d; halfbred, 84d to 9{d; three-quarter-bred, 7d to 9d. Crutchings, 6d to 13d. NEW ZEALAND BUTTER IN SOUTH AFRICA. DROUGHT CREATES LARGE DEMAND. A South African correspondent writes on November 2: —The prolonged drought in South Africa has brought about a large demand for New Zealand butter to meet the serious shortage of local production. Fully • 70 per cent, of the butter now being sold

in the Union is of New Zealand origin. The wholesale price of butter at present is 2/8 per lb. Included in the cargo brought from England to South Africa in the last week of October by the RM.S. Briton were 702 boxes, equal to about twenty tons of fresh butter, nearly all of which was of New Zealand origin. This was the third consignment of New Zealand or Australian butter to arrive at Capetown during October. Some of the boxes bore the dates 1917, 1918, and 1920, but consignees have the positive assurance that well-made butter, properly attended to in cold storage, will keep for an indefinite period. A shipment of South African butter was returned from England to the Union not long ago. sent wool-growers They, unlike other bodies, expressed themselves definitely opposed to control and possibly are still of the same mind. If such is the case, they have a right to object to control now. It is the duty of the Government to put this matter upon a more satisfactory basis. I am satisfied the producers never contemplated the Wool Committee continuing in existence and controlling sales in perpetuity. It is acting under no apparent mandate other than the absolute Gazette notice. Its present action is more likely to prejudice Wanganui and to benefit Wellington than to assist the producer to obtain better prices.” SPECULATION IN COTTON. LONDON, December 16. The Manchester correspondent of the Morning Post says that, with a view to coping with the critical situation created by American speculation in cotton futures a joint Lancashire committee, representing employers and employees, will on Tuesday, consider the possibility of c ganising a combination to combat specif. Gons which are estimated to be costing Lancashire £1,000,000 weekly.