COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 715, 14 January 1910, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

■V DTVESTMENT SHARES. . :Sales, wero.;recorded yesterday of National 'Bank ; shares ;at £5 18s. 6d. 'ex dividend- and'; cum rights, South British Insurance at.: £2.; 145.,: Westport Coal - at £6 55., and/: Westport-Sto'ckton at 7s. Eqnitablo :Bnildiriß,-.-.,buyers, £9 45.; :Wollington.iTrust:and' Loan, buyers £7:35.,6 d.; National Mortgage, sellers £3; New' Zealand' Loan and Mercantile, buyers 35.,3 d.; Now: Zealand, and Hiver Plate, 'buyers £1 155.,; sellers 1 £1 15s. 9d.; 'Feilding : Gas, buyers £1 Is.; -.Wellington Gas, ,£10 ; Daid,: sellers £18 55., £6 '15s. paid,' sellers £14 55.; New Zealand Shipping, buyers £7-10s.; Westport-Stockton Coal,- buyers 6s. 9d.; sellers Vs. 3d.; Leyland-O'Brien Timber, buyers £1 3s. - 3d.;' Now Zealand Portland Coment, buyers £1 175.; Sharland's ordinary, sellers . £1 Is., . preference, buyers £1 os. "6d: ■ ; ; OEIBNT„S.Ni, COMPANY., ' The Orient Stoarii Navigation Comoany, Ltd.; have issued'.-a: report, arid balancesheet for 1 tho half-year ended Juno 30, 1909. : The company's financial year has hitherto ended on: Dccembcr 31, but if this practice■ were continued the accounts, for 1909' would includo a- period of six months, - during which the company owned only half 'the ships running in the fort-' nightly,- mail' service, and another : period of six;.months during; which tho whole service was performed by tho company's stoamers. , In order to mako this development synchronise with a new account, tho financial year will in futuro end on Juno 30. Tho revonuo account for tho halfyear ended June 30, 1909, shows that after providing £25,416 for depreciation, tho net prollt is £19,308, to which is added bal-' anco'brought forward, £15,961,; mnkinc a total of; £35,269. 'A dividend at the rato of: 5 per; cent.peri annum on the deferred, .shares is recommended.■ Tho balance-sheet shows that liabilities, including preferred shares ;£203,490,, deferred shares £115.820, underwriting'account £36,993,. repair and renewal ■ account £15,000, deferred shareholders' rcsorvo account £1836, revonuo account £35,269, first mortgage 4 ocr cent, debenture Stbclt. £123,100,. loons securcd £205,000, : bills. payable ' against : construction of now stoamers £965,196, and other items, amount to £1,893,402,. Tho principal .asset is jthe- company's fleet, which, after deducting 'depreciation reserve '£884,944, stands . at £1,772,587.; P. AND 0. COMPANY. Tho accounts of tho Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company for tho year. ended. September 30, 1909, • show that tho net surplus, fotf the year amounted to, £275,280, including- £58,425 • brought forward, from :the. last' account. . After .deducting tho: amount of'the interim dividend- on tho preferred- stock of 2i per cent., and of 3i per cent, on the deferred 6tock, paid in May last, the balance admitted of a • further payment of- 2i nor cent, on the preferred, and 6J per cent, on the deferred stock, together with a bonus on. tho,latter, of 3 .per . cent. Tho profit for; tile, year-.was, therefore, coual to 9 per' cent, on tho paid-up - capital of £2.420,000. The directors, antlcipatina: a

sorious dcficicncy, in face of tho. gloomy prospects. of shipping 1 a year ago. : took tho precaution of. carrying forward an exceptional balance to the present account, viz., £58,425. . Happily, in declaring the same dividend and bonus as last year,, it had not beeu neccssary to utilise this, balance,-and the new balance to be carried forward Irom the present account has been increased to £GMBB. Referring fleet, the report states:— ! "The fleet has been navigated > in»complete safety, and with remarkable freedom from minor accidcnt throughout • the year—the total miloago* being approximately 3.C00.CC0 nautical miles. At the cuggestion of customers in. New Zealand, the. directors I aro about to try the experiment of extending the voyages of certain of the Australian .mail steamers: to Auckland, for the purposo of giving New. Zealand passengers through communication to Europe, via the Mediterranean. i With regard to. Australian traffic, tho directors'point out that any development that has taken place appears. mostly in | tho direction of third-class or steerage. ! passengers, a business in which 1 this com-pany-do not at present : participate. . Tho l. close connection between India, China, and I Australian passenger services • has the 'effect of confining their mail steamers to | first and second saloon passenger traffic I exclusively. - | ' P. AND O. COMPANY'S FLEET, j Regarding tho P. and O. Company's fleet lof steamers, the following interesting references were included .'in the report recently submitted to the shareholders of the company:—"The three new steamers of the 'M' class—the Morea, Malwa, and Mantua—have now been at work for some months, and have met . with general approval on the part of tho travelling publie. The directors are at present negotiating rfor two - additional -vessels, of., .this type, but of increased dimensions .and capacity; It may bo. mentioned that the above-named, now steamers have been: fitted with the Marconi system of wireless telegraphy, and, as land stations throughout tho East aro inaugurated for this, particular work, the company's .mail 'ships, will bo fitted up. accordingly."' Until\quiterecently eight of the company's steamers were laid up in London, .but- five -of. tho oldest of these shipß have now been.sold,viz., the Victoria,. Britannia/ Peninsular, Malacca; and Formosa. The ; prices • real-' iscd were extremely low, but the book cost had been fully covered by the, operation of the ordinary' sinking fund, and a trifling profit resulted on the whole.transaction. There are : only three steamers Jaid up at tho present time,; and it is. hoped that employment will be found. for.- more, than one of them, ere long. . Tho fleet haa been, navigated in complete safety • and with remarkable freedom from minor accident throughout the year—the total' mileage being approximately '.3.000,000 of, nautical miles.". ; • ' OLEARING-HOTJSE : RETURNS. The returns' of the clearances of ,the banks trading in Melbourne and Sydney, for " 1.309, show that Sydney c; leads for the ' second 'year in succession. In the -past fifteen years - Melbourne has been in fae lead no , fewer than eight times. In. 1909 banking business in Victoria'went' on unchecked, aud, ; with a good wool clip and-the promise .of a good harvest, the increase: on- the clearances-for: the year was £18.309,932,..a8' against. £12.909,494 -shown by . Sydney., The largest clearing--house return recorded in Melbourne, was in 1890. when ty jtots.l of £315.190.160. was' reached.-■Thflnpv as the boom col-, lapsed, tha'Sweagances dropped to .small dimensions nntu!'in 1896; ,they touched £141,736,671.Fr0m-.that year 'onward the. figures expanded,." so t%t by . 1907 they reached ;a. total * of: •£236,593,780.- In; 1908, owing- mainly to conditions, ; they fell to" £221,353,675. Although; the Melbourne'clearances, show a greater'increase than Sydnoy'si this only tells a part of the tale, for it is estimated that every £1 cleared in , Sydney is equivalent : to £1ss. cleared in. .Melbourne, owine to .the fact that there - aTe more banking institutions of. a size in Melbourne than there are.in' Sydney.," In the latter two of the banks are much larger than'any ; of-the others.The internal clearings of these institutions < aro ' accordingly correspondingly'large, yet they'do . not tend to swell the .clearings as published., . The returns from the ' two centres' for,* the'' past: ifiye years- compare as: i, - V : - \ V . >. .. < Melbourne. , ..Sydney. Year. £ £ - 19D5 : •187,632.425 159.826.381 , "1906 220,042,056 220,860,512 • " -. 1907 .• ; 236,593,780 • -234,169,822 •;•;•• 1908 :/ 221,353.675 . • ' : 1909....1... 239,663,607. : •- 240.645,737 ' NEW YORK LIFE. . ■ The Australian management of the New York, Life; Insuranco Company*- advise' that they arc in receiot of a cablcd communication from their .head, office in New York to thp. offect that the new. insuranco effected . an* • oaid.. for , during the • year 1909 amounts to £29,000,000.-: Tho 'total insurance, in. force'. at. the; -close; of > the year, on' which premiums have been paid."/exceeds the. sum of -£400,000,000... . . V, .. • * COTTON AND ; WOOLLEN. ; / . : Theorise in-cotton; one would .imagine, »wouldj favourably the woollon'-in-. .dustry, but . this.-.is ' not the v c.ase,. in 'Yorkshire a good deal of •cotton -ifj': | consumed in" the woollen . and worsted I trades. A contemporary r states-Thero are' no data on which can be relied I upon.that give any idea of.the nuantity 'of cotton' yarns used by woollen : and worsted manufacturers in the . West Bidling,: but, at a'-rough guess, we'should eay j that~ 25.; per cent, "of tlieV yarnsemployed be ; cottoh.v while, if-. cognisance is I taken of < the of -raw/ material 1 used, say, of .''American, -Egyptian. , and Peruvian,- in' conjunction with:.wool and I mungo, for blending purposes, then. the proportion .will bo considerably more. Take Bradford dress [trade. There is 'hardly a:firm producing stuffs•,but what largely uses cotton yarns, as 'warn, making .'worsted and mohair yarns servo aa !-weft. ; - .We should say that here. 33 .per cent. *18 hearer: tho. quantity. consumed in the dress trade, there being no vqry big I stock of dress goods made out of solid : worsted "yarns, both warp and weft. In; ovory conceivable, way ."are cotton yarns being.' used , in • white, coloured, and printed along with Ovists. ,If wo look more minutely at the woollen trade, then tho manufacturers of Leeds, Morley. Ossett; ißatleyi' Dowsbury, : and districts employ largely cotton yarns in the'PToduc tiou of . serges, meltons, beavers, etc., theso mostly; being used in conjunction with woollen weft. We know for a positive fact .that there are to;day ,morD,' cotton yarns being twisted along with onei' thread of: .worsted (usually . coloured), or . one thread of woollen, than ever thero was, while, this season thero is' a big riin upon solid, cotton twist yarns' in the'production :of rainproofs. It; .really 'is surpris-. ing to. what extent cotton .is entering into the' production of these men'B. win-ter-fabrics, and: it is already a foregono conclusion that they are going to "bo also largely used for ladies' costume, cloths' next year.; Cotton thorefore. aro an important commodity in' .tho woollen and worsted trades., v:. .' . - SOME. RECORD STEEL CONTRACTS.' • According to tho New. York "Journal of Commerce," dated November 1, 1909. tho railways in America recently had placed contracts for. railroad cars and other equipment aggregating 2,000,000 tons of finished steel , products, including structural material. The increase in tho orders for locomotives during the past few months was scarcely less impressive than tho car obligations. 'During October between 550 and'6oo locomotives were ordered, or nearly 700 iti the last two months, matting the total contracts for locomotives placed since the. first of January, 1885., In 1908 locomotive orders were estimated 1182; in 1907, 3400; and in 1906, 5600. Two months remained to complete the 1900 record, but it was barely possible that the 1907 stage would bo reached. It was estimated that the orders for motive power and other rolling stock placed by the railroads in October , would call, for between 700.000 and ,800.000 tons of v steel, products. . • . • Contracts for rails placed the last' week in October' aggregated 270,000 tons, including 165,000 tonß for Now York central torn, which orders had been practically placed, although the distribution had not been officially announced. There seemed to, ho reason to believe also that thero would be a supplementary- contract placed later by tho New York Central. Business was ponding with othor Eastern roads for about 75,000 tons additional. ' The total rail contracts'for tho month were 500,000 tons, or about 200,000 tens loss than in September. ; Since thov first of the year railroads had been committed to 3,000.000 tons, of which 1,300,000. tons were for v 1910 delivery. ; . This activity in tho iron ' and : steel trades has stimulated practically all other industries in tho United States, and * the reports of a great revival in trade from that quarter are, therefore, reliable and very encouraging. Customs rovenuo collected at Wellington yesterday amounted to £4563 03. sd. AUSTRALIAN. PRODUCE MARKETS. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. v (ltec. January 13,. 11.45 p.m.) Sydney, January 13. Wheat, 4s. '3£d.; flour, old £11, new £10 10s.; oats, Algerian, feeding 2s. Id. to 2s. 2d., Tasmanian 2a. 4d. to 2s. 7d.j barley, Cape,' 2s. lOd. to 35.; maize, 4s. 3d. to ,45.'6 d.; bran, .£4 5a.; pollard,: £4 10r • potatoes, £6 to-£7; onion's,.£3; £4..and £5; butter, 955.; chcese, sd, to 6d.; bacon; fall to Bd. 3 Molbourno, January 13. Whoat, "4s. 3|d.'; -flour, £10 55.; oats,- Is. lOd. to 2s. Id.; barley, malting,-,45.s maize, bran, £4 75.'6 d.; pollard, £5 5g,; onions, to £4.' .... ; ' Adolaidoi January •13, ". ■ Wheat, ",4s.' 3d.j flour, ••£loj '.brail',via.i pollard, le« Id.

ANTWERP WOOL SALES. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Rec. January 13, 11.45 p.m.) London, January 13. • Tho Antwerp wool sales have cloScS. Merinos showed par to 5 per cent, advance! Crossbreds. were eagerly' disputed for at 20 per cent.-higher. Of 5814 .bales of La Plata offered, 3543 sold. . WHEAT. (Sec. January 13, 11.45 p.m.) London, January 13. Cargoes are slightly easier, 'owing to resellers realising their profits. The American visible supply of wheat, is 45,013,000 bushels. HIDES ."MARKET. : (Rec. January 13, 11.45 p.m.) Molbournei January 13. In tho hides market, supplies . were, moderate, apd there was an excellent: demand. Light-weights were id. dearor. 0.0. AJS'D D. COMPANY. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) ; Napier, January 13. The 0.0. and D. Company's cable, regarding the frozen meat market, states:— "Price for Napier, Wellington. and North Island mutton :is 33d.; lamb, first41d-., second 32d.;. beef, hinds, 3d., fores 23d." • '