Commercial Intelligence.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 3285, 8 April 1885, Page 2

Commercial Intelligence.

SYDNEY MARKETS. The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agenoy Company, Limited, reports ou the Sydney markets under date March 28th, as follows : — BUTTEK. The local company having advanced the price 3d per lb in consequence of short supplies, New Zealand is now in good demand, and unless excessive shipments come forward, ■we look for the present values of lOd to Is to be maintained. CHEESE. (Duty 2d per lb). It has a somewhat restricted sale at from Gd to Gid for prime New Zealand loaf. HAMS AND BACON. (Duty 2d per lb.) Both are now in better demand, and for really piinie qualities quotations are: — Hams, lOid to lid; bacon, lOd to 10£d. WHEAT. Milling qualities of Adelaide and New South Wales are now fairly firm at 3s 5d to 3s 7d, but millers do not care to operate at these figures in the expectation of a further decline. No inquiries for New Zealand milling 1 . Fowl's feed has a good demand at 2s 5d to 2s Bd, according to sample. OATS. Good bright esood descriptions have n. firm domand at 2s Id to 2b (Jd, but feed sorts (in sympathy with tho maho market) show a decided drop, 2a Id to 2s 3d boing outside value for vory primest samples of abort stout Canadians. Bnyors are holding off in anticipation of -a further fall. BEAN. Is in good request, but prices rulo low, 9d I>eing prutjont value for wholosalo lines of Now Zealand. POTATOES. Have hardoued considerably, and for Warnambook 60s to Gss is readily given. New Zealand descriptions rule a shade lower. MALT. (Duty Gd per bushel.) English malt is now quoted as low as ~3 3d without eliciting much notice, as a consequence, New Zealand has declined considerably, and in faot, cannot be moved at tho moment. Quotations are nominally 5s 3d to 6s, doponding on quality. ENGLISH MARKETS. Messrs Miles Bros, and Ce. report under date London, February 2Cth, as follows : — WOOL. The first series of colonial wool sales for the year commenced on the 20th January and terminated on the 13th inst. Tho catalogue^ havo comprised : — Hales,. Queensland ... 15,ty1/i Now South Wales 4-i,4>J2 Port Phillip 75..480 Tasmania 458 South Australia 24 840 Western Australia 1,046 New Zealand 9,955 Cape and Natal 29 ,'251 Total 200,936

! The total .available quantity amounted to j 211,500 bales. 32,500 bales of the new arrivals ! having bnen forwarded diroot from ship to Yorkshire or tho Continent, and there were some 0000 bales of old stock on hand. The : sales opened with a fair attendance of buyers, ' and competition was animated, bnt November rate.s were barely maintained, poor and faulty wools showing a decline of id to Id per lb. A firmer tono, however, soon after prevailed, und up to tho end of the first fortnight prices showed littlo variation from those ruling at ■ the provious series. At this point the unfavorable news from the Soudan caused a general depression in the market. Aconsider- ■ able quantity of wool was afterwards withdrawn nightly, and rates were very irrogular to the close of tho sales. Crossbreds of ; all kinds have been quite as high as in 1 Novembor, but all other descriptions must be ! quoted Id to Id per lb lower. Really good ; combing murinos do not, however, fully share > in the decline. The limited quantity of New ■ Zealand wool of tho new clip offored was well competed for. The withdrawals at this series ' have been large and some 40,000 bales have consequently to be carried over. About 60 per cent of the quantity sold has beon taken > for export. ' The next sales will open on the 17th March, ■ the fresh arrivals for which up to date amount j to 120,(519 bales, including 7005 bales New ' Zealand. WHEAT, FLOUR, ETC. Extrome dnluess is still the characteristic of ' the wheat trade, and prices have again touched the lowest levol, with a very limited demand, j Onr farmers continno to push their stocks on ' the market at tho best prices obtainable, and colonial samples aro not thereforo much • sought after. Supplies on passage aro large, the total quantity from all parts boing 2,400,000 ' qrs., against 1,090,000 qrs. this time last year, • while tho visible supply in America has increased to 43,370,000 bushels. Tho imports 1 of Australian wheat into London have j" been small, and for stocks on hand [ the demand has been limited at 3!!s to 3fis 6d c per 4901b ex granary. Off coast all the resent arrivals have been purchased on French : account at prices varying from about 35s Cd to • 36a 6d. For forward delivery February- • March shipment, the quotation is now Ms to 1 34s Gd. Stocks of New Zealand wheat here ; now are low, but parcels are nevertheless diffi- ■ cult to move. Perfect long-borried is now 1 worth 33s to 355, and average quality ! 32s to 335, out of condition lota bring from ' 25s to 30s per 4961b. There has been a ' falling 1 off lately in the supply ef American flour, but stocks here are still heavy, and [ trade is very slow. Superfine Australian is worth 24s Gd to 255, fine and honsehold, 20s to [ 22s ; superfine New Zealand, 22s to 245. Good heavy New Zealand oats are in request at | from 31a to 32s per 3841b, and ordinary feed I sell at 22s to 23s per qr imperial. New Zea- ' land barley is only in limited request at 34s to : 36s for malting, and 30s to 31s for ordinary • quality per '1481b. Best New Zealand beans ' are worth 32a to 33s per 5041b, and broken 3 30s. Best boiling peas bring 35s to 365, and ' feed 30s to 31s per 5041b. > TALLOW AND HIDES. The demand for tallow continues very dull, i aud it is with great difficulty sales of Aus--1 tralasian can be made, and at the sales last : Friday it was not so much a question of price ' as an almost utter absence of demand from ' the trade. They would only buy for lm- ' mediate wauts, and where sales were in any ! pressed, a concession of abont Is per cwt. was 1 submitted to. Home tallow is in largo • supply, and is of good quality. Tho 7 stock this day in first hands amounts to | about 15,800 casks. Hides — At tho hide sales 1 last Thursday there was a limited demand for heavies, which were in some oases Jd per lb ' lower. Light ox aud cows, however, wero iu ' request at fully previous rate-s to id per lb > advance. VBOZEN MEAT. The demand for frozen mutton is rather ; better and prices somewhat firmer. Home ' supplies are uot quite so large as they were, 1 and there is not much New Zealand mutton • remaining on hand, only a few small lots being ' left in the refrigerators. Two cargoes of Melbourne «heep aro on the market. These are ! being sold at 41d to 4Jd, and although ' not so good as best New Zealand, 1 are quite equal to some of the secondrate now on the market. The s.s. Tonga--1 riro has arrived from New Zealand with ' some 14,000 carcases, some of which will pro- ' bably be on the market to-morrow. The s.s. ' Arawa, also from New Zealand, with 12,000 carcases, is expected in about a week's timo. Prime large New Zealand sheep are making > os 6d per stone, and merinos 3s to 3s 2d. Most 1 of tho lambs havo been very small and thin, ' and have been making 6d to 7d. Com- | plaints have been made by the butchers L hero that the quality of some of the late ship- ' ments from New Zealand has not been so good ' as formerly, and many of the carcases were too fat. It is very necessary to keep up the 1 quality, for if second-rate sheep are sent they havo to compete with shipments from Aus- ; tralia and the River Plate. MONET. Bank rate <t per cent.