COMMERCIAL.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCVIII, Issue 18084, 24 November 1924, Page 6

COMMERCIAL.

LONDON MARKETS. By Cable —Press Association —Copyright, Australian and N.Z. Cable Association. Received Nov, 23, 5.5 p.tn. LONDON, November 22. Sheep—New Zealand, Canterbury, light, 9d, mcdimxi 9d, heavy B£d; North Island, light B£d, medium bjd, heavy BJd. All abovo are nominal. Ewes 7id; Argentine, light 9d, medium 84 d, heavy 74(1; ewes 7id. Lambs—Now Zealand (all nominal) —Canterbury, light 13id, medium 13id, heavy 12Jcl, seconds 12Jd; selecteds, light 13.1 d, medium 13d.: North Island, firsts 13d, seconds 12id; Australian, first, Vjctorian 13d; others 12|d; seconds, Victoria 123 d, others 12|d; thirds 12Jd; Argentine, firsts light 13d, seconds 11id. Frozen beef. —New Zealand fores 4Jd, hinds 5Jd; Australian crops 4id, hinds 4Jd ; Argentine fores 4 jd, hinds 6d; Uruguayan fores djjd, hinds 54d. Chilled beef—Argentine hinds 7Jd; Uruguayan hinds OJd. Other meats unchanged. Cotton —Liverpool quotation, American Middling Upland, December delivery, 13.36 d per lb. Rubber—Fine hard para, 17jd per lb. plantation, first late crepe, 17-id, smoked ribbed sheet 17£d. Jute—lndian native, first marks, November-Decembor shipment, £4O 12s 6d per ton. New Zealand hemp, NovemberJanuary shipment, £43 per ton. Copra—South Sea bagged, OctoberNovembar slripment, £29 per ton. Linseed oil —£46 per ton, equal to 3s BJd per gallon. Turpentine —60s per cwt, equal to 4s 6id per gallon. Antimony—English £65 10s to £6f Tin —Foreign £55 to £57.

A QUIET WEEK. It only happens on very rare occasions that wneat is raped irom 'Lunar u to Curiatctiurch> but at til© present time ioxvi wnoat is being so dealt witn owing to an acute shortage ot tins oommoctity jn the northern part of the province. Xb© pnoe is 7s 2d on trucks, lor good wnoie, and even at this figure it is cuoaper tfian the next wneat to be landed here from Australia is ©xpected to be. Brospecss tor the growing wheat crop are very firignt ,and tfiougu the area sown is loss tips year than last year, present indications ponit to a yoi'y inucn heavier yield this year than last. Etforts are being m,ade to make forward sales, and tempting prices are being offered, but growers, generally speaking, prefer to take their cfiance of the marget later on, especialy in view of the enoouraging cables from London. There is a sliglitiy larger area xn 0,8-tg this year than there was last year, and the yield premia 3 to be very much heavier. The niarket.at present is inclined to Weaken, owing to the abundance of grass, and to the fact that more Canadian oats were imported than will bp required. There is very little doing ip oats, only an occasional order being received trpiti tho North Island, this boing on tho basis of 4a 9d, on trucks, for B grade—a drop of 3d on tk week. As with wheat, efforts are being Vnado to cfloot f orw&i'd Biil6s oats, the price offered being in the vicinity of 3s for B gr,ade Cartons. Growers, however, are not inclined to do forward 'business. v ~, . ■: The chaff market is weak, £7, on trucks, being to-day’s quotation. The sale of a line of malting barley, at 6s 3d, is reported,, but there is very -little offering. - - , Peas are now all in merchants hands. The Home nyirkot is better than it was, but it is not good enough yet to let merchants out of their stock®, without Ipsa. The value of No. Ts is 6s, on truck?. . Only a nominal quotation (£l7 lUs per ton) can be given for linseed. Thore is none now in growers’ hands, and there is very little held by merchants. ' The’ market for grasses is without animation. There is no demand and consequently there are no sales. With heavy, high-prioed stocks on hand, and flip promise of a large saving of seed this season, tho grass seed market is not viewed with very pleasurable anticipations. Not marry orders are coming m for potatoes. Those whp want old tubers have to take reds, which are worth £3, on trucks, sacks in. No whites are available. New potatoes are selling locally at 4d per lb. In Auckland there has been a marked fall in the price of new potatoes which are now quoted there at £8 10s per ton. The price offering for April-May-June, delivery there is £4 10s on trucks.

PROPERTY SALES. H. AHcliurcli and Co. submitted to auction on Friday two town px'opeities. The first was a block of land adjoining the coif links, whiclj was sold under instructions from the Registrar of the Supreme Court. This reached £l5O, at which price it wa3 bought m by the mortgagee. The second property wa3 a residence situated in Hasspll Street, on account of Mrs Agnes McArthur; Bidding commenced at £650 and rose to £750 at which price it was knocked down to the Timaru High School Board;

REVIEW OF THE SHARE MARKET;

There was an improvement iu the tone ol tins spare market during me latter part ol lust week, ilie improved on (took m tpe pastoral and ugncul lurtil world aoout oy tho prices ruling lor uie staple pioducts ot uie coumry, bus peon reiiected m the values of snares m mCut companies, Joan and agency businesses, and m shipping companies. . iu tiie banking group _ Australasias Jiave lound buyers pt alt 3 4s. The rights to Union Bank new issue closed mi link inst. 'J ho riguis closed at 4/a, and buvers are oil the market tor shares at £l3 6s, but sellers ask £l3 Ids. National Bank of JNew Zeulund are wanted at £6 18s 6d, lint sellers are not (muting. Mew Houtn W.ales tiro linn at *4O lUs’, with £4L as a selling quotution: Several sales of JNew Zealand at 59s bd have been followed by further business at OUs 3d, ami buyers now oiler (ills Cd-. Commercial Bank of Australia contemplate a lresh issue, pnd sales lmvc bfciyu tifc Ocl, ith u dcmaud ior move at the sumo pi ice. Royals are. 32s 9d to 33s 6d. There lias been an improvement in the demand for insurance scrip. A sale of Nationals at 70s was followed by buying orders Jor lurtlicr lots at that pi ice. South British have been transferred at 42s (Jd. New Zeal antis remain Jinn in the region of 30s, at which price sales were cifocted. Standard buyers are linhiippliod at 4 I s. in shipping linos, Huddart Parkers have crept up to 43s 3d, at. which price •sales have been made, with buyers offering 3d less. P. and '(). deferred stock has firmed to £3Ol. buyers, with a seller at £4- move. Union Steam preference are wanted at par. Sales of Westport Coals have been made at 31s Oil, cx-divideml, which was paid on 20th. Buyers offer 345. (Stockton ordinaries arc asked for at 2s Cd, without response. I lie prcdcreucc have been asked for at 5s (id, but sellers require os. Taupiris are offered at 18s Oil. Dalgetvs arc now e.\-dividend. and buyers' f ' olieriim: Cl 3 P's, without ic.mimse. from sellers. Goldshrmnd,

Morts aro wanted at 48s for the old issue and a shilling less is offered tor the new. National Mortgage are asked lor at 775, without tempting sellers. N.Z. Loan and Mercantile stock is at £93 buyer. N.Z. and River Plate has a seller at par. . T „ „ , . In meat preserving, N.Z. Rerrigerating show renewed activity, bales have been made of tho contributing fit 11s lOd and 12s, and buyers offer a penny less for further lots. The paid-ups are oil the market at 22s 9d, with offers to do business at 9d less. Canterbury Meats have sellers at £l4 ss, but no buyers are quoting. In brewery shares 28s 3<l has been given for N.Z. Breweries. 'lho stock and debentures remain unchanged. Mannings are weaker, sales 33s tkl. Crowns aro at 44s 9d buyers, (bales have been mado at 45s 3d). Wards have a buyer at 50s 6d, sellers asking Is (id more. Death and Co.’s are firm at 3ls 3d buyer, 31s 9d seller. Brown, Ewings, and D. I. C. are unchanged. Kamppi Woollen (ordinary) are by no. moans strong at 14s 3d to 15s. Sales ot Mosgiel Woollen at £6 15s indicate a slight weakening. Further buyers offer £0 10s. New Zealand Drugs, rights to new issue are now on the market, and aro offered at os bd, but 2s Gd is the best buying otter. N.Z. Paper Mills ex-dividend, have buyers at par. Business has been done in W i son s cement at 305 % Milburns renyun at the last recorded figure (365). T In Mining, Waihis have firmed to 25s 6d with sellers at a shilling more. Electrolytic Zmc have been sold at 24s 9d for the ordinary issue; the preferential issue remains at 28s. Madn Grand Junctions are very low; lSd is offered, but 2s 6d is required. Mount Lyells are stronger; 21s 9d is buyers’ price, but sellers ask 22s 3d. Several transactions bonds of the issues ot 193 b and 1339 at £97 10s are recorded. A close maiket in Soldiers Bonds is a PPf vc,l f T £lOl 7s 6d is offered and £lOl UL is asked. For Christchurch Drainage Board 54 per cent, debentures £9B is not sufficient to induce business.

COMMERCIAL BANK OB AUSTRALIA. . The Directors of the _ Commercial Bank of Australia will bring before a lfieeting of shareholders early in December a proposal to increase the capital of the company, which a 3 the last balance, to £4,000,000, by the creation of 839,522 new shares ot 10s each. These shares aro to be offered to shareholders at a premium of 10s each; preferential shareholders will also * e ’ ceive their quota. The terms will be 5s on application and the balance by three instalments of 5s per share at sue times as the directors may determine.

ASHBURTON GAS COMP ANA. The annual meeting of the above company was held, last we ek. 1 e balance sheet showed a profit for the year of £1596 14s 7d, which with the amount brought forward, made a credit in the profit and loss account of £lßll 9s 3d. After placing £IOO to renewal account, and £IOO to; the reserve account and (after making P l ™?’* f depreciation, a dividend ot 7 pci a it was declared. This absorbed £k>2B 14s lid, and left £282 14s 4d to carry fciward.

WAITAKI FREEZING COMPANI. This company, after acquiring tho works of the New Zealand Refrigerating Company at Pulceuri is still indebtto the fatter to tho extent of 150. The assets include land and bui dines and plant £191 ? 123, stocks £lO 030,, cash £978. A footnote in the balance sheet states :-“The nbove assets are secured by debentures to the New Zea land RefnWing Cnmpany and t° the National Bank'of New Zealand. ine paM'Ar Capital of the Company is £46,078