LONDON'S DEARER LOAF.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIC, Issue 13335, 11 July 1907, Page 3

LONDON'S DEARER LOAF.

BAD WHEAT PROSPECTS. (" Daily Chronicle," May 23rd * 1 Owing to the bad crops, the price of . wheat luis been advancing during the pa.-t few weeks, and household bread, which has been selling at and sd'per 4lb loaf, r will probably be advanced another -gd , within the next- few days in London. 1 But this is not, yet as high as it was in 1904, when there "was a veiv bad Ameri- ' can crop, and " town hour.sholds" fetched j 28.- a sack. " best American paU-nts'" o2s to 34--. a sack, and household bread was e sold from s£d to 6J,d a loaf. The present increase is wholly due. U> bad crops and s the shortage of supplies, and is the result of the condition of the world s maikets. Mr Newth, flour merchant, sail" The causes of the rise are bad crop reports fiom Roumania and Russia. L is supposed that the Russian granaries are almost

-imply, and, according to the laxrs of Rrssia. the merchants are bound to refill their granaries before they can export grain. Then we are getting very bad crop reports from North Germany, Central Europe, and South Eastern Europe. I was told only ibis morning, that within the last three weeks Germany has had her agents in the i a.4ein counties of England,'buying up all the wheat, they could iind. It is reported they have purchased; no less a quantity than from 40,000 to 50,009 quarters of English wheat, which has bet-n shipped dirrcct to Germany. "In America the sowings were, very late, owing to the bad weather, and the drop in ths acreage in Canada is 25 per cent. In the winter-wheat belt in the United States over 3,500,000 acres of wheat land have been written off as totally abandoned. That is on account of the lateness of tiie sEa-

A member of the London Corn Exchange was of opinion that thy demand is becoming greater year by year ,and is gradually outstripping the .supply. One or two exceptionally good years would 1 help to alleviate t-ha it rouble, but only temporarily and, unfortunately, the harvests of late ysars have only been very moderate.

Next day the " Chronicle" had the following:—London seems to be. taking the prospect of dearer bread very calmly. ■ Bakers naturally regard even a halfpenny advance with satisfaction, though there is a tendency to see in ths rise lather a return to a normal state of affairs than a speculation.

So far the advance has taken effect in B-aptford and Lewisham (including Lee ana Caiiord). The loaf previously sold 1 there at 4jd is now sd, and the 5d loaf is Walworth bakers will probably follow suix, and tlis lead given in London will probably be followed automticaliy by those bakers m other parts ot the country whose prices have been below those ot the large fiiiiis. The cause of the i-ise is- that 'the' very hard and prolonged winter and tne great, crought have killed a certain proportion of the wheat grown in Kussia, Konmania. and the United 'Wtoiea of ana excited Americans tell us that in some portions in their country 60 per cei.t. 03 bliQ crop is ruined. The people in London have' had abundant. cause to 'discount- very considerable an\

statement that conies irom America, and u U mc.vt 'improbable that there will b~ a paismanent- rise of mora than a halfpenny a quartern. >

Kng.isli flour has gone up about 3s 6d front the lowest price, but Hungarian tlour h;us gone up_6s or so from thei bottom-, and- ili.j prospects in that country are not. very promising.

B.ufc Hungaiy, Russia, Roumania, and 'ilia United States are not the-only factor; affecting the situation. Theie is a heavy demand for wheat in Germany, and a possibility that. France may aiso come hut. ih_- market. The mvult is that something like thrte-iifths of the wheat supplies maj go to the Continent, a reversal of tlueconomic order that, in itself would be a good reason for the change in prices. A Reuter's telegram ivom Bucharest say> the exceptionally J prolonged droughtthroughout the country is causing genera: anxiety. The liarveist is seriously damaged, and prayers for rain are being offered in nsarly every district.