Commercial.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XIX, Issue 26, 27 March 1891, Page 13

Commercial.

The Nbw Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Limited, report for the week ending March 25, as follows :—: —

Store Cattle. — There is no change to note in the position of the market, which continues somewhat quiet, and with the season so far advanced when little or no improvement can ba looked for in respect to feed, graziers refrain from operating. After harvest, however, it is quite probable that an improvement in the demand will be experienced, especially for well-bred grown bullocks for both stubble aod turnip feeding.

Store Sheep. — The strong demand lately experienced continues still to exist ; indeed the supply seems to be very far short of requirements. At country sales held during the week there were buyers for all sort?, also very satisfactory prices obtaining. Tbere are numerous inquiries made privately for supplies, which at the moment cannot be satisfied.

Sheepskins. — A very good demand continues to exist for these, all sorts being readily disposed of. On Tuesday, our regular weekly ■ale day, we had a very full attendance of buyers, when we submitted a heavy catalogue of both dry and green skins. Dry crossbreds, low to medium, brought Is lid to 3s lOd ; do do merino, Is lOd to 3s 9i ; full-woolled crossbreds, 4s lid to 69 5d ; do do merino, 4a 2d to 5s 9J ; dry pelts, 3d to Is Bd. Butchers' green crossbreds, best brought 3s, 2s lid, 2a lOd, 2s Bd, 2s 6d ; good to medium, 2a 4d, 2s 3d, 2s Id, 2s, Is lid; inferior, Is 91, Is 7d, la 6d, lg 5d ; green lambflkine, 3s, 2s lid, 2s lOd, 2s 8d 2s 7d, 23 sd, 2s 3d, 2a Id, Is lid, lß9d.

Babbitskins. — During the earlier months prices steadily advanced, but at the September sales a relapse occurred and subsequently they were somewhat irregular. Quotations at the 31st ult. were, howevei, generally Id per lb higher than at the same date in the preceding year. There is a falling off in the demand for black skins, and the value of these shows some decline. Since the above report was issued two public sales were held in London, and, unfortunately for shippers, lower prices ruled at each. Nevertheless, a very good demand exists for all offering locally, and prices obtaining fully equal to those ruling previous to the falL

Hides. — The market is unchanged with respect to the demand for heavy sorts, which are wanted, and could be readily placed at enhanced valueß. But there is ro improvement in the demand for light weights, and prices for these continue low. Quotation! for inferior and slippy, Id to l^d ; light, l£d to l^d ; medium, 2d to 2\d ; heavy, 2fd to 3d. for 65 to 801 b ; hides in faultless condition, £d to Id more per lb.

Tallow. — We quote prime rendered mutton, 18a Gi to 20?, medium to good, 15a Cd to 17s Gd ; inferior and mixed, 12s to 15a ; rough fat goes into consumption immediately produced, best clean caul fetching, 13j to 13s Gd ; inferior to medium and good, 9s to 12s 6d per cwt.

Grain — Wheat : Business during the past week has only been to a limined extent. The unsettled weather prevailing is retarding threshing operations and up to the present deliveries of th? new grain have been light, at the moment millers are alverse to operate to any extent pen-iing further deliveries. Any offering however, in prime milling condition fiod purchasers at late quotations. Fowl wheat is still in short supply and selling reaiily at prices nearly up t) bost milling. We quote prime velvet and Tuscan, 3s lOd to 4a ; medium to good also best red wheat, 3s 8d to 3a 9d ; inferior to medium, 3h5J to 3a 7d ; ex store. — Oais : Deliveries of the new crop have not assumed to very large demensionsas yet, consignments beinsr confined to an odd truck now and again, but the demand is not by any means satisfactory. Shippers are not anxious to do business even at a reduction on late quotations, while millers are not disposed to purchase with any freedom simply buying sufficient to meet pre-sing requirements. Wt- quote best feed and milling, Is 5i to Is s?d ; medium to good, la 4d to Is 5d ; inferior and musty, Is 2d to Is 3}d ; (ex store sacks extra.) Barley : Pending the arrival of the new grain the market is quiet, a moderate demand exists for prime malting, medium is also saleable in limited parcels but has not the same attention as the former, a slight demand also exists for feed and milling and occasionally sales of these descriptions are being effected. We quote prime malting, 3s to 3s 3d ; medium to good, 2s 6d to 2s 9 J ; feed and milling, Is lOd to 2s 4d (ex. store sacks extra.) Byegrass Seed.— We quote best machine-dressed, 5s to 5s 9d ; farmers' best dressed, 4a 3d to 4s 9d ; medium, 3s to 4s (ex store). Cocksfoot seed haß a moderately fair demand, and at the moment the market is barely supplied. Quotations for best dressed, s^d to s^d ; medium, 4^d to 5d per Ib. Potatoes. — There is no improvement to note in the position of the market, which continues overßupplied, We quote best Derwents 50s to 55s ; medium, 40s to 47s Gd ; kidneys, 30a to 40a per ton. Dai^r Produce. — Considerable quantities of factory made cheese are noiT*being shipped for the Home market, chiefly on company's account, very little changes hands otherwise. The only demand for butter is for local requirements. Beet salted in Pond's boxes fetch 6^d to 7d per lb, no demand for medium.

Messrs. Donald Stronach and Sons report for the week ending Wednesday, March 18, as follows :—: —

Fat Cattle.— The supply was only a moderate one, 175 head being yarded ; nevertheless, the demand was slack, and prices barely

equal to those current last week. Aa far as regards quality, there were few really prime cattle forward ; indeed, the majority of them were only half and threp-parta fat. Best bullocks brought from, £6 10a to £8 ; medium, £4 10a to £6 ; light, £3 to £4 ; best cows, £5 to £7 ; medium, £2 10 to £4 10i ; inferior £1 to £2

Fat Sheep.— 2l6i penned, a huge piop-,rt\->n of them ewc3 of very indifferentquality. There were not many sheep forward suitable for export. The demand, excepting for best lots, was not brisk, and values as compared with last week'B were quite Is lower. B jst crossbred wethers brought from 133 to 14s ; medium do do, 11s to 12s 6d ; light, do do, 9a to 10a ; best do ewes, 12s to 13a ; ordinary do do, 10a to ITsGa ; light, do do, 7d to 9a ; merino wetheis of medium quality, 73 to Bs. We sold on account Mr. W. Brady 34 crossbred wethers, at 9i* 9d ; 17 merino wethers, 8s 3d; en account Mr. W, K. Mclnto&h 27 halfbreds at 10s 3d.

Fat Lambs.— 7oß came forward to a good market. Last weeks prices were well maintained. Prime freezers realized frjm, 10a to 12a 69 ; ordinary lots, 8s 6d to 9s 61 ; light aod inferior, 69 to 7s 6d. We sold 24 at 10s, account Mr. W. X, Mclntosh.

Pigs. — 192 penned, moat of tnecn stores. The sale tbroughont was a poor one, and last week's values were not maintained. Bacon pigs brought from 30a to 38s ; pjrkere, 21a to 27a ; stores, 5s to 17s ; suckers, 3s to 7s.

Store Cattle. — There are occasional inquiries for well-bred, grown bullocks suitable for fiuishing off on turnips, but we do not hear of any transactions.

Store Sheep. — The past week ha** been the busiest of the season in this line. It is estimated that not lesa than 50,000 have changed bands privately and at auction since our last report, and the demmd continues without any abatement ; in fact the supply is not equal to it. We sold aline of 170 on account Mr. W. K. Mclutosb, at prices ranging up to 89 7d.

Wool. — Three or four small sales were held on Monday last — ia all about 250 bales were offered. Competition was brisk, and prices obtained quite equal to those current during the height of the season. Most of the wool offered were more or less faulty, which has to be borne in mind when comparing values.

Sheepskins continue to meet with ready sale ; in fact, the demand far exceeds the supply. Country dry crossbreds, low to medium, brought Is 9d to 3s 101 ; full-woolled crossbreda, 4s lOd to 5s 7d ; do do merino, 4s 3i to 5a lid ; dry pelts, 2d to Is 7d ; butchers' green crossbreds— best, brought 3s, 2s 10d, 2s Bd, 2s Gd, 2s 4d, 2s 2d ; good to medium, 2a, Is 10J, Is 9d, Is 8d ; inferior, Is 7d, Is 6:1, Is 5i ; green lambskins, best, 3a Id, 2s lOd, 2s 8 i, 2i 7d, 2s sd, 2s 3d ; medium to inferior, 2a 2d, 2a Id, 2s, Is lid, Is 10J.

Rabbitskins.— The quantity offering is not great, but any lots coming forward meet with re dy sale. Springs and summers are worth from 8d to lid per lb, suckers and runners 3d to 5i per lb respectively.

Hides — A very good demand exists for prime heavy hides, but they are in short supply, the greater proportion, ttat come from the country &* least, being either light and damaged in the flaying, or spoiled by baing badly got up and dirty. We quote — for prime heavies to 3d per lb (for extra h^avy and thick a £d to Id more) ; medium, 2d to 2£d per lb ; light and inferior, l^i to I^'i. lallow — Owing to the soap and candle makers having very large stocks on hand, and to their not working full time, the demand is hardly so brisk, No difficulty, however, is experienced in clearing odd lots at s lghtly reduced piices. We quo'e — prime rendered mutton tallow. £20 o £21 ; prime lendcred mixid, £18 to £19 ; medium, £1G to £17 : inferior, £10 to £14 ; clean mutton cauls, 12a to 13a Gd ; inferior to medium, 9s 6d to lie.

Grain. — Wheat: Although cable advices have been received from London that a rise had taken place there the news has not bad the effect of advancing prices to any appreciable extent here. This can be explained by the fact that ihe quotations for this market were more than equivalent to those ruiing in Lindon, and even now shippers could not buy wiih any hope of making a profit. The advance, however, has bad the effect of making prices firmer, and sale* of new wheat, which wore hard to effect at last week's quotations before uews of the excitement in the wheat maiket in Lon len reached us, are now more easily effected. Very little, however, h>a been done in locally grown wheat as yet, aud millers are not at all an&iou9 to stock at present rates. We quote forsouthjrn wheat : — Prime milling, 3s 9Ho 3s 1H ; ordinary, 3s 7A to 3* 9d ; inferior, 3a 4d to 3s 6d. Oats : A few samples of new oats have reached us during the past week, and as vessels have bean on the berth for Sydney, from whence rather more encouraging reports are being received, all suitable parcels were readily sold. Shippers, however, are not inclined to advance no last week's quotations, and although small parcels have been sold at a slight advance the sales were made only to fill urgent requirements, and it would be misleading to quote the figures obtained for* these sales as market rateß. We quote -.—Prime milling, Is s^d heavy bright feed, Issd ; ordinary, Is 4d to Is 4£i ; Danish and long, Is 4d to 1b 4^d. Barley : Theie is practically uo business doing. Ryeprass. — The demand is now principally confined to clean samples fit for sowing without being cleaned, but as the great bulk of the season's seed has been already placed on the market, the business done is iimited. Dirty samples are also saleable at equivalent prices to machine dressed seed. Machine dressed, 5a to 5a 3J ; heavy clean farmers' dressed seed, 4s 9J to 59 ; medium do do, 4s 3i to 4s (Id, Diity seed according to estimated less in cleaning.

Messrs. Donald Reid and Co,, Dunedin, report for the week ending March 25, as follows :—: —

Store Sheep, — The demand for this class of stock continues exceedinly brisk, and the number offering is not sufficient to supply the present demand.

Sheepskins. — We submitted only a moderate catalogue at our sale on Tuesday, which was held at the Chamber of Commerce aa usual. Green pelts sold at Is lOd to 2a lid; do lambs, la lid to 3s ; dry crossbreds, 2s 3d to 6s Id ; do merino, Is 8d to 5s 4d ; pelts and lambs sold at 4d to 2s 4d.

Hidw- — For several weeks past the number of heavy hides offering, both green and Baited, has been unusually small, and for these there is ■ strong demand. We qaote— Prime heavies, 2fd to 3d ; medium, 2cl to 2sd ; light and inferior, l£d to If d per lb. Tallow.— There is a brißk pale for all arriving, and a much larger quantity could be satisfactorily placed if available. We quotePrime rendered, 18s to 20s ; medium do, 15s to 17s ; inferior do, 11s «d to 13s 6d ; rough fat, 9s 6d to 13a. Wheat.— During the week the demand for this cereal has been very brisk, and considerable business has been done at more satisfactory prices. Cablegrams from London, reporting short Bupplies, and showing a steady rise in values there, have caused a somewhat speculative business in the local nnrket, and millers, seeing that it is at any rate unlikely that prices will be lower during the season, are laying in considerable stocks. Fowls' wheat is scarce, and meets with ready sale at quotations. We quote— prime milling wheat, 3s lid to 4s ; medium. 3s 8d to 3s lOd ; fowl wheat, 3s 4d to 3a 7d. Oats.— We quote— milling. Is 5Jd to Is s£d ; bright feed, Is 4d to Is 4£d ; discoloured, Is to Is 3£d. Barley. — New samples are now arriving, but as practically no business has yet been done we refrain from quoting. Chaff — Only a moderate supply forward, and prices are firm at —for oat sheaf, £2 to £2 63 ; wheat, £1 15s to £2. Potatoes. — The market is well supplied, and there is a moderate demand at— for dements, £2 5s to £2 15s ; kidneys, £1 10s to £2 ss.

Mr. F. Meenan, King street, reports :— Wholesale prices— Oats : la 3d to Is 5d (bags extra), quiet. Wheat : milling, 3a 6d to 4s ; fowls', 38 6d — latter firm, Backa included. ChafE : Market full— £2 to £2 7a 6d ; hay, oaten, £3 ; best rye-gfaßß, £3. Bran, £2 10s. Pollard, £3 10s. Potatoes, kidneys, £1 10s to £2 ; derwents, £2 10s. Flour : roller, £10 to £10 15s ; stone, £9 5s to £9 15s. Fresh batter, 7d to 9d ; salt, nominal, for prime, 6d. Eggs, Is. Oatmeal, in 251 b bags, £9.