Commercial. AUCTIONEERS' REPORTS.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume VII, Issue 671, 19 December 1882, Page 2

Commercial. AUCTIONEERS' REPORTS.

Messrs H. Matson & Co. report on the Live Stock Market, &c.,.for the week, ending Thursday, December 14th, 1882, as follows :—For yesterday's Addington market a large supply of sheep came to hand, the entry being made tip by a large number of stores nnd light weight butchers' sheep, together with a small proportion of what may bo termed prime mutton. At the opening of the sale a strong effort was made by the trade to reduce, in Rome measure, the high prices lately ruling for fat sheep, and one or two of the first lines in the market wore papsed. , This apathy •on the'part of buyers, however, soon gave way, those present becoming alive to the fact that unless they ppeedily secured their supplies they would soon he out of the market, and, as a consequence, not only did conipetition improve, but the sheep previously passed were readily placed at prires fully bearing out last week's rates. The.same remarks apply to the remainder of the sale, for after the dullness of the first hft'f hour, we consider prices were rather firm than other— wise, in comparison to hte ruling rates. We cert- inly think, as regards the price of mutton, this season, thnt owners mny congratulate themselves on the result, as both before and since shearing values have kept up remarkably well. For medium weight crosabreds (out of the wooi) we realised as high as 11s to 12s yesterday ; heavier lines up to 14m, or equal to quite 2d per ib for the best quality, l£d for inferior. At t'lese quotations we cleared every line of 'butchers' sheep on our list, and could have placed more had they been to hand. For young stores there is no abatement,in the, demand, and prices as ruling now are fully as high aa we have seen them this season. Nine shillings per bend seems a long price to pay for hoggets just out of the wool, but this is the ruling rate at present for good well grown lines 6f sheep ; other classes proportionate rates. In fat lambs. l yesterday's supply was* about an average one, but as the quality was exceptional, there was o rise of 6d to Is per head generally throughout the market. The fat cattle s;ile w;isan extremely dragging and unsatisfactory affair throughout, the warm weather having no doubt brought about a I etto.r enquiry for lamb, &c, than for beef. Yesterday's transactions in the latter were mirked by still further reduced rates, and there can he no denying the fact that many lines of light weight cattle changed hands at about 20s per 1001b, though tho better classesjnay be; ut -2s or 3:1 per 100'b..'.;above, this rate. •.The improved demand • noted for store cattle for several weeks past was fully maintained at yesterday's silo, when nearly every lin« penned changed hands at rates 15 to 20 percent higher tji.an they wareworth five or sis weeke since. The pig ii-ade at present is very dull, nothing lv.it "light weight porkers and good stores being at nil saleable. Tiic totals yarded for the day comprised GIG 7 sheep, Gl7 head of cattle, and 103 pigs.