CITY TRADING

Southland Times, Issue 23768, 16 March 1939, Page 3

CITY TRADING

MILLERS AWAITING NEW OAT CROP LOW GERMINATION IN RYEGRASS By OUR COMMERCIAL EDITOR Wednesday Evening. Harvesting operations as far as cereals are concerned are now general throughout Southland and the period of fine weather has enabled growers to get their crops in in good condition. Merchants have up to the present time been busy handling wool, but as the last sale is now over space in the stores will soon be released. Oats.—Harvesting is now general and the crops have every appearance of yielding good returns. It is expected in many instances that the bushel production an acre will be very high. The present spell of fine weather has enabled the growers to produce the grain in good condition, although in many cases the samples will probably show a fair percentage of green oats through the crops having gone down with the recent wet weather. Up to the present milling and shipping buyers have not shown very much interest and are probably awaiting the threshing of the new crop before placing their orders. In the meantime current values to farmers are about 2/6 a bushel for A grade and 2/3 a bushel for B grade. Wheat.—For the current month values to growers on a basis f.o.b. Bluff are: Tuscan varieties 5/6; Hunter’s 5/8; Velvet 5/10. These prices are subject to a further guaranteed minimum bonus at the end of the season of threepence a bushel. So far no Southland wheat has been offering and supplies required for the local poultry trade are being drawn from Canterbury. Chaff.—The only avenue of distribution for chaff at the present time is the local demand which at this season of the year is very small. Value to growers for good bright quality is about £4' a ton on trucks country sidings. Ryegrass.—So far there has not been a great deal of ryegrass offering and most of the lines submitted are of a quality considerably below normal. Because of the poor ripening and harvesting conditions which have existed, merchants are exercising caution in making purchases, and are confining their offerings to seed on a dressed basis and on a Government germination certificate. There has been a good deal of delay this year in obtaining germination resuits from the Government because of pressure of business in this direction, but most of the results so far received show very disappointing germination tests. Very little, if any, of the seed will show germinations of 90 per cent., or even 80 per cent., as is common in_ a normal season. However, any really good germinating lines should command good prices. The range of values for machine dressed seed, is as follows:—90 per cent, germination, 7/6 a bushel; 80 per cent. 6/6; 70 per cent. 5/9; 60 per cent. 5/-; 50 per cent. 4/-; 40 per cent. 3/-. Lines showing germination of under 40 per cent, will be difficult to dispose of and will command proportionately lower prices according to their merits. Values for Italian ryegrass will also vary according to quality of germination, and while lines of machine dressed seed showing 80 per cent, will command 5/- a bushel, values are proportionately less for the lower germinations down to say 3/- a bushel for 50 per cent. seed. Chewings fescue.—Threshing of Chewings fescue is still in progress. Merchants are anxious to make purchases of early threshed lots because of difficulty in getting sufficient seed dressed to complete their orders for early shipment, and lines on offer are quickly snapped up. As a result prices to growers for machine dressed seed have advanced to 1/6 and 1/7 a pound. The seed generally is in good condition, but some of the samples are inclined to be light and may prove to be somewhat deficient in germination. Values for lines from the mill range from ninepence to 1/1 a pound according to q Browntop.—There has recently been more inquiry for this seed and some forward sales have been made. The new season’s crop has met with a better market, with probable opening values ranging up to 1/2 a pound for machine cleaned certified seed. Potatoes. —It was expected that some more definite pronouncement would be made about the admission of New Zealand potatoes into Australia. The quantity sanctioned at present is not enough to make any material improvement in the prices to growers, and both wholesale buyers and sellers are inclined to delay operations until the position is more Clearly defined and the possibility of additional shipments to Australia is known. As far as Southland is concerned, few if any potatoes will be available for early shipment which is required by the conditions, and Southland merchants have so far displayed no interest in the market. Unless the period for shipment to Australia is extended considerably it is unlikely that they will show interest until the main crop becomes available towards the end of next month and May. THE FRUIT MARKET This week will probably see the end of heavy consignments of store fruit. Nectarines, plums and apricots are now practically finished and the bulk of supplies comprise late varieties of freestone peaches. Bon Chretien pears appear to be finished, and it is now difficult to secure ripe lines of any dessert variety. The tomato market has advanced almost daily in the last week and high prices are now ruling. According to reports from Canterbury the bulk of the crop has now been marketed and supplies will ease off very quickly. Good supplies of apples are coming forward, the bulk of these consisting of the lower grades which are being cleared at fairly low rates. It appears that the majority of the Cox’s orange apples to come on the local market will be of small size. Gravensteins are nearly finished and small lots of Worcesters coming to hand have only a poor demand. The market is bare of oranges at present, another shipment being due at the beginning of next week. Bananas are also scarce, the next shipment being due on the local market on Friday. Vegetables of all descriptions are m short supply, with high prices ruling for most lines. The wholesale prices are as follows: Apples.—Cox’s Orange, 7/- to 10/a case; Worcesters to 7/6 a case. Tomatoes.—Hothouse, to 9d per lb; Christchurch outdoor, to 7d per lb. Plums—2/- to 5/-, according to variety. Nectarines. —3/- to 4/6 a box. Peaches. —2/6 to 4/6 a box. Pears.—6/6 a case and to 3/6 a box. Cabbages—s/6 a dozen. Carrots.—2/- a dozen. Lettuce.—To 5/- a dozen. Marrows. —2d lb. Pumpkins.—To 2|d per lb. Cauliflowers.—lo/- a sack. Cucumbers. —to 7/- a box.

RANGE OF PRICES Wholesale Bran.—£6 a ton. Butter.—First grade, 1/4J. Oatmeal.—2s’s £2O a ton; 200’s £l9 a

ton. Pollard.—loo’s £7 10/- a ton; 150’s £7 5/- a ton.

Flour.—2oo’s £l3 15/6 a ton; 100’s £l4 12/6 a ton; 50’s £l4 17/6 a ton; 25’s £l5 17/6 a ton. Retail Btan.—7/6 per 1001 b. Butter.—l/6 J. Oatmeal.—s’s 1/6; 25’s 6/9. Flour.—2s’s 4/6; 50’s 8/6; 100’s 16/-. Pollard.—9/- per 1001 b. Onions.—3lb for 1/-. New potatoes (local). —2d per lb. EGG PRICES Egg prices are quoted at from 1/8 to 1/9 a dozen retail, with wholesale prices from 1/6. Country prices, Id a dozen less. SEPARATOR BUTTER A wide variety of prices is quoted by wholesalers and retailers for separator butter. Wholesale prices, according to quality, range as follows: Inferior to medium quality 9d to lOd; good quality 1/-; best quality to 1/2. Retail prices range from 1/2 to 1/4,