Taranaki Herald. MONDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1907. THE WALL STREET SLUMP.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13549, 28 October 1907, Page 4

Taranaki He ral d. MONDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1907. THE WALL STREET SLUMP.

The extraordinary panic wL^ch visited the New York Stock clinnge last week does not appear toTmVe'h'nit xhy marked effect i in London j which, is a fortunate thing 1 fdr Australia and New Zealtmd, for, strong as is our financial position just now, any further depression /upon the London Exchange liiust . have been more jor less reflected here. Curiously enough, hoWe\*er, New Zealand securities have, firmed' '.^uitt» appreciably during, the last few days. Wall Street has been in trouble fori several months; partly Oil aecoitnt of the depreciation of metals, especially copper, which has fallen tremendously in value during the last six months, and partly on account of ' President lioosevelt's determined attitude rtowjirds the trusts. Betwfeen.Jaiiuary Ist and August 31st the • depreciation of securities ■on 'the Wall Street Exchange is estimated, at £600,000, 000, and since then- there has been ii further — heavy depreciation. During the* same, perjojl qf, eight months stocks* on London Exchange have suffered* (depreciation to the extent bfiM^OpO/OtoO, a large proportion of- it being in American railway securities held in England, which fell qser^tsyen-ty-ftve per ceiit-. That, of '-course, is?' 'traeeftblfc • 'ajso v :to;: to; President Roosevelt's attacll^i ijtfce railway magnates. In otkeytfeaaesitfre depreciation "is easily Tactfounted for ;. that in British railway .securities, for; inosvn£ey ; by Wt tne • " threatened $I>bur. tßOubjles,;^^; tliat in Sp,uth' Aftf|caii ihineß' f ßy the uncertainty as to/ future &Ttj>jyUfetr 7 of /j labour .. Imperial' Cbn'sdfc'lii\Ye t depreciated ©oasdcterabJ^jtuxi^roßiSbly .-because other almost equally .^ilt-edged seciirities giye". a fetter 'return. Hiere is nothing in all /these to cause r an^iety f ;a,s vtcrtjie'*'. •financial sihtiility of the great monetary and commercial institution s 'of the United Kingdom. In WalFStreet, the home of .".frenziqd:i'ili?OißQP>" the position is different. The ex-, traordinary prosperity of the TJni-, tec! &taf es ; lias $Tiqpqis ged, , overcapitalisation and led to^altogether fictitious values of railroad, industrial and commercial stocks, and at the first sign of panic many of' the weaker^ concerns have collapsed like a-house of <?ards. These will not recover; their extinction. may 1 even be a good thing in the end ; but the general prosperity of the fcountry will soon enable the sounder concerns, which the state of panic has temporarily embarrassed, to recuperate, -and in a few weeks tne slump will be forgotten except by those individuals : who have suffered ruin, and. the" country as a, whole will be the .healthier for the experience. At the present juncture it is interesting to note the exceedingly,, satisfactory atate. of things financial in New ■Zealand, as disclosed by tlie quarterly banking reiurnp. just issued. At the end of September the assets; of the five banks amounted to £2G, 070,871, and ihe liabilities to £25, 385>970v Four of the. banks are employing all their funds withinthe Dominion, but. the Bank of New Zealand has more money than it needs foi* local requirements, and consequently is employing over a million and* a half abroad. The great expansion hi i;he ; advdnces, which. have increased year, by year from' iilG#TB,-512/ fifr^ ye&r^ ago" to &18,4()8#31;i^1y£ is e;vi(|ence ofi tlie! .growing prosperity -of thej coiiritry. while : the fact that diseouhts are less" than, they were tvyp ,and\triixee ytears ago. may be^ taken to ind'ica:te a sounder stated of -'b^Lisi^ess* ifijwl le,ss dependence' upon pap,erj. renewals.; The deposits show an increase bf ovVr a million as compared. with the, previous , year's, . fixed deposits being less in amount, while free are £1,29£,64p ,nfore, , The,., note circulation amounts to £1,594,660, on /increase; ' of £42,000 in t|he year,. ' „Biit perhaps .the .ni^st sa^sf^ctfirj feature oi all ds tjhe,

strength of tlie hanks in the matter of their metal reserves. Tie total coin and bullion held at tie. end of. September' was £5,003,83hy an increase, of ,£1,7,68,887 since,; 19(J2f "and nearly a million sineo I9()/>? 'Altogether the: position, W, Kir Joseph Ward says, is qnijte^. satisfactory, and there is |\o. caiisd for anxiety r oii' the 'score jofilw> .Wiill Street, slump having! a< serious effect, if any at all, in NeSv" Zealand. .» . i