COMMERCIAL REPORTS.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume VI, Issue 4, 15 April 1913, Page 452

COMMERCIAL REPORTS.

THE HIDE MARKET. Ik view of the enhanced value of hides and skins on New Zealand markets, the Director of the Live-stock and Meat Division of the Department, Mr. 0. J. Reakes, D.V.Sc., M.R.C.V.S., asked Mr. A. Crabb, M.R.C.V.S., the Government’s London Veterinary Officer, to investigate the hide and. skin position in Great Britain. Mr. Crabb’s report is as follows : . , I note the conditions existing in New Zealand, as described m your memorandum, and find, on making inquiries, that a similar state of affairs obtains here namely,, that values have had an upward tendency for some considerable time, that the demand undoubtedly exceeds the available supply, and that it is considered more than likely that such conditions will not only continue but may probably become more acute. Dealing first with the actual prices : An examination of the ordinary market quotations shows that the value of hides has been increasing more or less regularly for some years, and the following extract from the Leather Trades Review .of November, 1912, shows the position : “ Since February last, hides have gone up as much as fd. per lb. From 1894 to 1906 the prices went up steadily, dropped slightly in 1907, since when they have ruled gradually higher until, in the spring of this year, they touched 7d. To-day, 7jd. has to be paid for hides of good quality.” The above refers to Great Britain, while an American report of October, 1012, states, “ Market active; prices high fully |d. higher than record prices of 1909 ; up to 19 cents.” ' . . . As an illustration of the more or less steady increase in value the following quotations may be of interest; they are London prices and refer to ox and heifer hides (first); but a similar rise in price is noted in hides of all grades :

90 lb. and upwards. 59 lb. and under Per lb; Per lb. January, 1909 .. • •• 5Jd. 4|d. 1910 '6|d. sfd. ■ „ 1911 .. •• •• •• s i d - s i d - „ 1912 . . ... • • • • s|cl. - s l d -

During the year 1912 the rise in value was very marked, tire price increasing month by month until in December last 90 lb. and. up were quoted at 7§d. and lighter weights at 7Jd. per lb. During this month the prices have eased slightly, the latest quotations being 6 jd. and 6fd. respectively; even this, however, being an increase of l|d. to 2d. per lb. in four years. . . . ■ '. , ~, . As to the cause, I find that this question has been exercising the minds of those interested in this country for some considerable time, and various reasons have been given for the disturbed state of the market; it is not, however, considered to be due to any trust or market manipulations, but the result of a genuine and gradually increasing Statistics show that in most countries the increase in the number of cattle is not in proportion to that of the human race, and that there are now less cattle per thousand of the population than was the case some years ago. Other contributing conditions are (as in* New Zealand) increase of dairying resulting in decrease in weight of hides, increase of individual wealth and of demand for luxuries, the last named involving a decided increase in the uses to which leather is put. , A fain quoting from the Leather Trades Review of November, 1912, I find the position dealt with as follows : “ Owing to a variety of causes, one of them being the rapid development of the motor-car industry, there is an unprecedented demand for leather and a o-reat shortage of hides . . . there is apparently not the slightest likelihood of any drop in prices taking place; indeed, the tendency is rather the other way.” Then, dealing with the cause, the same report continues, “A greatly increased demand has, doubtless, contributed something to the shortage of hides, but the more important factor is that, both here and abroad, fewer cattle are being reared. In America alone during the last twelve years, while the population has increased 25 per cent., the supply of cattle has shrunk by 7 per cent.”

The increases, however, have not been sufficiently large to balance . matters, as from the latest statistics available the proportion of cattle to inhabitants of the whole world is as follows: In 1880 there were 192,000,000 cattle as against a population of 411,000,000, or 467 cattle to every 1,000 inhabitants ; in 1908 the figures were 269,400,000 cattle to 572,700,000 people, or 383 cattle per thousand. , •

Cattle. Population. Number of Cattle to each 1,000 Inhabitants. United Kingdom : — 1895 .. ■ 10,800,000 38,800,000 278 1904 ... 11,600,000 42,700,000 271 1911 .. 11,860,000 45,360,000 261 United States:— 1890 .. .. 57,600,000 67,600,000 852 1900 . . 62,000,000 75,600,000 820 1910 .. 69,000,000 91,900,000 750 Argentine : — 1888 .. 27,500,000 4,600,000 • 5,978 1904 . . 33,000,000 ■ 5,900,000 . 5,593 Australia :— 1893 .. 11,600,000 3,090.000 3,754 1911 .. 11,740,000 4,470,000 2,626 New Zealand :— 1904 .. 1,700,000 800,000 2,125 1911 .. 2,020,000 1,050,000 1,923 India : — 1898 .. 87,000,000 228,500,000 381 1903 .. 85,100,000 231,800,000 367

As illustrating the smaller proportion of cattle to population, the following figures, although it has not in all cases been possible to bring them right up to date, will be of interest:—

— ' Cattle. Population. Number of Cattle to each 1,000 Inhabitants. Canada :— . . 1901 .. 5,600,000 5,600,000 1,000 1911 .. 7,900,000 7,200,000 - - 1,097 Russia 1888 .. 27,600,000 102,000,000 269 1904 ,. 33,200,000 116,000,000 286

On the other hand, Canada and Russia show a slight increase in the number of cattle, as under:-