COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 699, 27 December 1909, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

U; ; ;'^''; ; 'THB;EITBBEE .SUPPIiT:" .''■■.■''..'•■• : ■ The 'demand.'for■ rubber:for commercial •purposes'-:has:.greatly exceeded' the. supply, and 'prices' have : advanced, to a;..level. that is almost prohibitive.■-.■, The riicoid-. pneo. of "99. 'iid. per'; lb;: was v-recsntly obtained : ,in .London..' ■ Tho : impply is ' Etoadily oxpandiag;;. new plantations .are .....ba.ins:plante6f, known' rnbber-yieldine trees: are .boing-'■.■ freely i ' exploited, ;.■ and ,; sclentiflc. hicn are engaged in exploiting new rnbber 'treies. :; The'production will, before ;many years, bo 'Quito equal to' the demand, when values will:revert.;to normal.'" One of the future 'sources of^supply, will be Moxico, for . tho 'discovery ol' new rnbber-yieldlnK plants is 'reported'by Dr.: Pehr Olasori-.. Seffer, ■'. who.' a fow ■ yoara ' ago,- was com-': "missioned .by .the: Mexican-Govornrtcnt , . to. investieato , tio. of rtlie. ■flora of 'Mexico,v, Tho- dootor ; is reported 'to have discovered three difforent 'species of plants '. widely distributed throughout /Mexico, ana all ; yielding excellentVTubber, somejbein!?:;nrßt grado.;i:.:.' ; :. t . !••■•,v^ r ■ v; - ■■■■■ ■ ''-notes.;-n'.-■.• ' /.v ~ The 'Transvaal ;gold; yield:-for. 'the ten ! months - : ended- October .'3l .totalled. 6,077,790 flno ouhce3, valued- at ,£25,816,620,' and the' dividends;declared during,the same,period totalled £4,790,696.: : .;' .'..■■■'" ■> ' , , : ;;. ■-■ •' Tho increase In builoing in the 'TJnited States'' this year/ is' very, striking/ and'has quite brought back the: activity which, existed, in , this direction the crisis of 1907.. : In. tho. first months of last year tho'building permits in the lead-'lug-cities :ampnnted to £91,664,622,: whereas in the same period :this'''y.ear. they, 'nave roached .;'£l36.ss3,3o2,';,an'_..lncrease . ot .£44.8118,780. or.;of '.49.9.'p6r-.cont.. thouah. In New :York the■ incroase haa only: been 3.5 per'cent. \But this raeiinn .a large additional', employment and. consumption, of, materials. „■: . : ■ ! .- ' "■• '■'■••■ ■■■'■- ■The '.'net...profit 'of■ J/ and K. .Coats, -,'lilniitod (the sowing cotton manufacturers, cl' Palstey,' Scotland) "for (tho year' ended Mune'JO , amburit'ea to' £21917,666,: as; cocipared with £2,701,697. in the preceding finniK ci.il year. After;: paying the ufual divi-. donds.'iplns aborius, XSOO.OOO is 'added to the reserve fun(!B,i/ : iflcreaslng- them to :£6;5C0,0q0, land £774,637 is carried to, the now.ivc'conntV"Those are big figures :from so insigniUcant a '':prodact as sewing .cottonij.,,:,":,:.,x^'.'; ; ;. ; : ; ': : ,;3v':.v:,: ; ;;./.;;, I : ;t, >: - i&i'^^'y , ':'-/:' ■'- '■■■•. -i". ..

Australia's trade with the East ifl crowring at a rapid rato. Yet,curiously enough,'that with .China, the .-most populous ■ country in- the East, is languishing. The expansion has- been very marked. in the: case .of Japan; Doubtless the prediction is true that "Australia: is a wes« tern • • country vwith an- Eastern destiny." Tho following figures may be given showing .the growth • of Australian .exports to the ; East since Federation:— < GROWTH SINCE FEDERATION. i9co. i9ca. Exports to—£ . liong-Kong .m.'......!........., 388,362 . 756,779 Straits . Settlements 100,451 - 575,911 China .527,260 < 280,265 ■ : Japan 170.134 1.267,963 . Java' 150,484. 260.344 ..v Philippines v...... 226,421'. . 614,589 N;; Total £1,563,112 £3,745.651. / The ' aggregato figuresfor 1908 ,show an increase .-of just.: on'three-quarters 'of a million as compared-with" thoso .of 1907, which are not inolud<fa; in the above table. ..The President"bf the' Royal' Commission oh ; Privato - International La\y,, sitting: at The Hague, stated, recently' that' the pro-' jected conference to draw up international ■regulations regarding bills of exchange would probably .meet,, at The Hague in June, 1910. / Thirty-one States- had alreadypromised to take, part in it, , but In tho case. of - fourteen- no reply had yet • been received. . The.'circular- letter , sent', out. by ; the Dutch' Government to the other '•Powers; had been favourably received, and ■was unanimously' considered to bo an ex-cellent-baais'for the' work of the confer' ence. . American Consul-General Charles Denby. •writing from Shanghai, -China, says:—"ln 1907- there were • imported into China, from all countries "about 300,000 tons, of flour, of which- about 165,000' cam- from: America. / Since 1907 the import, of American, flour has steadily decreased, until, now It has .almost , ceased. The uso of flour upon a large -scale as.tho food 'of Chinese depends upons it3'price as compared ; with rice, with rico cheaper than-flour for the 'same ;food value; the' Chinese - prefer rice; -Jt .' of economy and not preference for flour that lead- to its' use. . This rice competition ;has .not only affected imported flour; .' but controls the . price 'of the native flour . as well. The price of American; flour in this market would-bo about 1.16 dol. per bag. whereas:.the market- price of ,Shang-hai-made-flour'hasjfallen to 85 cents 'and •88 'cents:-per bag. ,/lDi'Viow. of the cheapness' of. flour, at Shanghai and tho favourable, prospect of the wheat crop, it' would seem reasonable'for the: Chineso to, con-sider-'shipments .to foreign, magnets. - It is known that Chinese flour of cood aual-. ity could be delivered at- Vladivostock' and in -the- Philippine Island* , at " lowor prices, than, are now -jpaid there for the Siberian and .'Australian-• flour." . 1 , Tho attempts -to restrict production ;by means. of working; short • :time .in the Calcutta jnte trade have not apparently been ■os'r successful : asy.anticipated. The ; . export statistics show that the output was not ' under /that -when' full time was- in .vbgue'. /and. this.: fact is attributed to, the. extra vigour, of : the workers, owing to-tho j shorter week's .-labour.. Nowithat a; "full I week is being ; practised. it'is found that! there : is -a decline in the energy of -the j hands. /They do not;put so much heart I -into their: 1 work,-during pis long days of ! fifteen hour's' each aa they did when their, week. consisted, of sevonty-flvo) ; hours, - with a wholo. Saturday-holiday at the end.of it,,, "Capital" suffscsts, that should.- begin., and. practise• tho of .the proposed;, new-Factory Bill,, so. far' as tho "hours, of labour ' are concerned." .and -especially - provide .for a ' Saturday half-holiday, : aria ' then; see . tho: effect' on' •the - In this \vlew;some -of" the" Reading • manufacturers - concur. . . Aluminium is gradually forcing its way, into, general use, and this is," wholly' due' .to the fact that : it. has grown cheaper.', ;It costs* something 'between £40 and £100 ;a ton to produce, but only a few .'years ago r ! when -the •manufacturer, was confined.to a few companies, the selling price went up -to £120, and on one -occasion to £2CO a. ton. . rSuch / prices, naturally had the effect' of bringing- 'manufacturing es-tablishments'into-existence,l 'and,, little by. little, ' the-" price : 'receded • until 'it went doTfn to £53 la ton. which left a. very small 'marein , to/ profit, to. the best-man-iaged, conceriis. ' -.-NoWi.- however, • it fca« recovered 'to, abdut '£70' a ton.,-and seems likely to stay at .that :figuro. • Its; production ■- is not,, after' all, (very* extensive, but . during :• tho; lest ten years'/ ithas • leapt' ahead. 1 In .-1898 ; the. world's - production •was :3953 • tons;' in 1908 .it -'was' 25,000 .tons. ••In..the .oldidays the production-was ? ruled .by a syndicate, .tfhich', dissolved ;when conw 'petition-grew keen, and prices went down. Now, however, there is -as possibility- ofthe re-establishment of : the syndicate, and th.ere will'- also,;.in all 'be a. weeding-out ■ of/'some of:. the factories,as •the-mere' fact.that;'owing to;.locaLcircum- : stances,'' theyA cannot produce tho metal iunder '£80, a ; ton .will 'practically put them out 1 of the :• market.'/ -r Some rof N them ; will doubtless turn ;thftir/attention: to tho. mak« ing of nitrates from the air. >\ ; l7hen'\that: '.is done; it; may.be takenjfor granted that •tho prico will, again rise. WELLINGTON PRODUCE MARKET. -New Zealand Farmers' Cooperative .Distributing Association gives the follow •ins,as the'current Quotations:—New potatoes/ bestv'Hutt ; £10 105;,.' medium' ; £7:los.',' Gtaki grown - £5 - 10s.- per ton.cabbage. chdce : 4s;,.'.ordinary. "35., > inferior,-. sack; green peas, 7d; : '.to Bd. per,peck;,carroti,;Hutt; is. 6d. dozen, excellent-demand: turnips, white, lCd.; to Is.. 2d. doteni. excellent' demand; vegetable -marrows, new, 3d. •to sd; each,, early let-, choice :25;.: inferior 6d. to Is., per spinach, testes., poor ls. : ,per case; French beans,'choico .Hutt'2Jd.','other lots •lid.,, prices .weakening encumbers; - • hot-; 'house 45...6ai.;.tb J r78. , :6d.,. : 6ut8ide grown. 3s; per • ddzen-:/broad-beans. Id.'; per lb. ; sprins onions,-Bd. to ls. dozen bundles; 'radish. lOd.: dpzen bundles; butter, best separator, •printed wrappers .-9d., isepariatori- bulk 8d. 1 . dairy,pats':7a. to' Bd.;- cheDse. best factory •Mediums 6d. per.lb.,' loaf, 62d. lb.; eprgs. Is. 2d. per dozen, good demand; bacon; factory Sid.o3. 8d.,,-: rolls :-9d,. hiam ';9ldSper /lb.; honey,- demand is .'.weak now..-jam fruits available, 60' a, 4d., - i 4's 41d. per. lb.; beeswax,.' strong/:inquiry, consignments would realise hign values; 1 fungus, keen demand at sid» : per: 1b.;:.-walnuts,« scarce, early lots .would realise .high ;values; tallow, tins,: 21s. 'to 225. cwt.: wool, sheepskins, and hides-special s"&le' on-; January: 14. '1910;> onions',--new, . Melbourne globes. -£9. 10s. per ton;-.tomatoes, hothouse 205.,: out-, side reds 19s;, medium .15e: to 17s.' per 'hair case-very- good-demand; v dozen. bhndfcs,'poor - demand; gooseberries, best. Hutt: 2Jd. to 3d.vper lb., Nelson ss. 6d. per half case; pooßoberneQi dessert, 7s. per half case; apples, cookets, large 35., small 2s. 6d. half case; apricots, choice large 7s. 6d., medium "-65., : small 35. : 6d. M half . case: peaches, choice'dessert 7s. 6d.,' medium. ed.,' " small .-4s.- half case; pines, 9si. to - 9s. 6d.-perrca;se; rblack currants. 45.. 6d. to 6s/ haU lease, :good . demand; plums, cherry, large ,33.' 6d.t6.,45.»: small Zs, 6d.. dark-to: atrawbarries,• 2s. 9d. por lb.: cherries, Nolson!; . dessert, 1 301bi. crates. 135., cooking, small 3s: 3d. half case: Austealian ,7s."dct 121b' case:-.raspberries; 33.; pa to. Is. 6a. per : bucket of about 121b.;. poultry, cockorelfl ss. 6d. tp 6a. 6d)'fop»)od birds.,small 35. : id.,table roosters. 4?. -.6d. to 55., table hen's,'s.: to ss.j small !3s. to. 3s. ,6d.;, ducKs, largi: 7s.' fid., small ss. 6d. per/pair: Keera, 9s.- 10s; 6d. pair; turkey* gobbleprlid. per ; lb., hens 10d. per. lb.-live wetsht.-'..-LONDON fIAHKET QUOTATIONS:.. 1 :By TeieKTapK—Press Aesboiation—Oopyrißht. . : S'(Kec. ; Docember 26;' 5.5 p.m.) , . Lohdoili December 25. The '• market; is inactive. WajinaryiHarch; shipment -is quoted at ill ;15s. Copra is', quiet.'-. South Sea. in bass. £23'. meet' with littie demand, and. quotations are unchanged. ... ■. ■ Babbits are quiet and unchanged. , .. - Hares.—TheTe is a very poor trade in hares,' with.. no ! Continental demand. ! ' ; ■ THE COPPEB ; I!ABKET. •By TelegraphWrrees A£Mciation—Copyrieht. : (Eec. December 26, 5.5 p.m.); - . . , London, December 25. ' spot, £60 ,15s. per ton: three months. y£62, 25.; 6d.; cbctrolytic,, £62 Ids.. : Customs'. revenue. collected at Wellinston on Friday last, amounted to_£2J7._lCs. 4d - The total for the week ended, Friday Was £11,679 12s.'. Id., beer : duty ; _amountimr t0..'£368;175. 5d., .and surtax to, £278 10s. 9d.