COMMERCIAL.

Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 165, 10 February 1868, Page 2

COMMERCIAL.

Wespokt Times Office, February 8. Respecting the business of the Port for the past week we have no heavy sales to report, and commerce generally is not very lively. The barque Nightingale, from Melbourne, and the Aurora schooner from Dunedin, have sorted our stocks of general goods, and the market is pretty well supplied with most staple commodities. Flour shows an upward tendency, £22 being asked ; but as present stocks exceed the demand, holders will probably quit to fair offers. The cutter, Dart, entered outwards on Saturday for Charleston with a small general cargo, but with this exception no export of any magnitude has taken place. llennessy's brandy in bulk has advanced .'3d per gallon, 8s 3d to 8s 9d being quoted. Oats are not much in demand, and stocks at present, are equal to the trade doing, they shew an upward tendency, however, 4s Cd being the quoted price. Tnc produce market generally has been a brisk one, owing to the auction sales which have taken place •during tiie week, this, though affecting legitimate trade, has not marred its soundness, and private sales have met with fair prices. The following arc a .few of the wholesale prices asked. Potatoes from C 8 to J212, the former price being in consequence of the auction sales—as one lot only realized £5 17s Gd per ton; onions, I lobar tTown, £25; turnips, 12s per cwt ; carrots. 12s ; apples, Ms the bushel of 40 lbs ; penrs, 28s per do. A quantity of .Newcastle cheese was offered at suction t'u -

nig the we|k, but withdrawn at Bd—a iair quotation for both colonial bacon and cheese is Hid. Maize nt auction realized 4g 6d per bushel, The vegetable market is pretty well supplied, and the Buller gardens are fast getting equal to all our needs. Two heavy shipments of sheep and eattlo are reported during the week, and the price of meat both wholesale and retail lias been reduced in consequence.

Mr Kirwan reports the sale of 83 head of cattle, by Kllen s. Page, principally for the Charleston market, and all in very "fine and healthy condition, at 4()s per 100* lbs. The eaig» by the brig, Susan, consigned to Mcs rs Spence Bros., were ollored at auciion <n Saturday, but no satisfactory bid was made. The sheep by the same vessel realized, however, average prices, and were all sold at from IGs to 18s per head. Horses not in demand. The demand for general merchandize for Cal diiuian and Addison's is steady, and .should fie weather contiune fine, no doubt trade generally will assume more signs of activity.