CITY TRADING

Southland Times, Issue 23922, 14 September 1939, Page 3

CITY TRADING

PRODUCE MARKETS QUIET NO NOTICEABLE CHANGE AS RESULT OF WAR By OUR COMMERCIAL EDITOR Wednesday evening. So far there has been no noticeable change in the produce markets as a result of the war between Britain and Germany. At this time of year there is, as a rule, no great activity and the markets generally are quiet at present. Oats.—There is very little business being done. Very few oats are offering from growers and the demand is slack. The continued wet weather is delaying the sowing of this year’s crop. Farmers however, might find it to their advantage to increase their sowings this season to some extent because of the change in international conditions. Values to growers at the present time range from 2/- to 2/3 a bushel for grade oats and 1/8 to 1/11 for under grades. Wheat.—Values to growers for milling wheat this month, f.o.b. Bluff, are 5/10J for Tuscan varieties, 6/01 for Hunters and 6/2£ for Velvet. Most of last season’s production of milling wheat, however, has passed into millers’ hands. The fowl wheat market is still dull, value to growers for good, whole fowl wheat being 4/9 a bushel, o.t.c.s.

Chaff.—This is dull of sale and merchants are experiencing difficulty in dealing with their store stocks. Value to growers for good, bright quality is £3/10/- a ton. Ryegrass.—There is practically nothing offering from the country, but a considerable quantity, particularly of low-germinating seed, is held in merchants’ stores on growers’ account. Good quality, high-germinating seed is scarce, but lines of low-germinating seed are a drug on the market. For the better quality lines values for dressed seed range from 3/6 a bushel for seed of 50 per cent, or over to 7/6 a bushel for 90 per cent. It seems likely that a big proportion of the lines of under 50 per cent, germination will remain unsold and these lines have very little commercial value. Browntop.—There is still , an. absence of inquiry for this seed and it is difficult to make overseas sales. Value to growers for machine-dressed seed is 1/lJ for certified and a penny less for uncertified.

Potatoes— Although supplies are now very scarce, small lines are coming to hand from time to time and local requirements are being kept supplied. It is noticeable, however, that there is a slackening in demand, due no doubt to the high prices ruling. Merchants are showing no keenness to lay in stocks, but are buying only fo actual requirements. Value to growers is about £l5/10/- a ton, o.t.c-s., for good King Edwards and £1 less for Arran Chiefs. QUIET WEEK A quiet week is being experienced on the Invercargill fruit marts. Practically all the imported lines have been sold out. Another shipment of Australian oranges is expected next week, but in the meantime retail stocks are negligible. There has been an unprecedented demand for citrus fruit generally since the beginning of the month. No more supplies are immediately available. The regular banana shipment is not due for about a fortnight and stocks of these are rapidly diminishing. A small shipment of Australian pine,apples arrived last week and was at once cleared. Some small lots of Californian grapes came to hand recently and these were also cleared on arrival. Apples are in short supply. Better supplies of vegetables are coming forward. Cauliflowers have eased in price. Spring cabbages are on offer and early rhubarb is arriving from the north. Brussels sprouts were plentiful last week and prices fell considerably. Wholesale prices may be quoted as follows: — • Apples.—Choice Delicious and Sturmer, from 9/- to 11/- a case; other sorts from 7/- to 8/6 a case. Marmalade oranges, 12/- to 15/- a 6/- to 9/- a sack. Spring cabbages, to 5/- a case. Parsnips, 2Jd per lb. Carrots, to 2d per lb. Swedes, to 2/- a sugar bag. Seed potatoes, 13/- to 20/- per cwt. Pineapples, to 23/- a case. Leeks, 4/- to 4/6 a dozen bundles. Brussels sprouts, to 4d per lb. Lettuce, to 4/6 a dozen. Spring onions, to 2/- a dozen bunches. Grapes, 42/6 a case. RANGE OF PRICES Wholesale Bran. —£6 a ton. Butter.—First grade, 1/41. Oatmeal. —25’s £25/10/- a ton; 200’s £23/10/- 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 Bran. —7/6 per 1001 b. Butter. —1/61. Oatmeal. —s’s 1/8; 25’s 7/9. Flour.—2s’s 4/6; 50’s 8/6; 100’s 16/-. Pollard.—9/- per 1001 b. Onions.—3lb for 1/-. Potatoes (local).—slb for 1/-. EGG PRICES Egg prices were quoted today at from 1/1 to 1/3 a dozen wholesale and 1/3 to 1/6 'a dozen retail. Country prices Id a dozen less. SEPARATOR BUTTER The wholesale price for separator butter ranges from 1/1 to 1/2 and the retail price from 1/3 to 1/4. Good lines are very scarce. TIN QUOTA FOR THIRD QUARTER FIXATION AT 80 PER CENT. LONDON, September 12. The International Tin Committee has fixed the quota for the third quarter of 1939 at 80 per cent., while the standard tonnage for the fourth quarter is unchanged at 60 per cent.