THE PRICE OF STOCK.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 759, 7 March 1910, Page 10

THE PRICE OF STOCK.

' LITTLE- PROFIT LIKELY. , Sir,—Surprise' has been '. frequently expressed by. thoughtful stockowners at the viugh prices which have been paid for f store cattle during tho whole of the pre■;sent season, and tho position in Queensland described by the "Pastoralists' lie■|View"will cerfaiuiy not tend to lessen that .surprise. The plontifulness '. of grass ''is' , .no doubt the explanation of the position in Now Zealand, but the prospects of. profit on the present prices of store stock neem to be very poor indeed.—l am, etc., ■ ■■'*■■: ■ ■■•■; ■ '-'settler. '■■ March' 3, 1910. ' ..' .. ...' .*. :■■■;-. ,' The reference to the subject in the ■"Pastoralists'- Keview" was as follows:— ■;' After the break-np of the big drought in in 1903. all sorts of wild state-' iinents were.-made .by and lnein'-'. Tiers of Parliament as to the celerity with which the country would be stocked up again,=.and as - to the vast quantities of beef'there would be available for export irithin,ayear or two. Every/cow was to have twins and to calve twice a and these new cattle ■were. to.bs -marketable: at. , a";particularly!. Barly age. The ' wildest' 'statements were rmade,. and reported by the gullible press jas authentic. Prom the first' we pointed cut that it would be 1310 before there would, be-much beef available for export, (and, moreover, to enabie-tho exporters to [take advantage of it, even then tho price (■would have-to come down ,to 145.. 6d.' (to 15s. :per. 100 lbs. dead weight. Shipiments'for the last five years have been:— 11905-6,: -273,224 ■ quarters; 190G-7, 314.850 (quarters; 1907-S, 227,233 quarters; and 1908-0, '29-1,815 quarters. .From our groat •rival-Argentina they have .been during the isime year 5:—1,894,175 quarters, 2,002,553 jquarters, 1,815,249 quarters,' and 2,373,■271 quarters, and are; still sfendily This is what keeps our price ' down. A cable order to Afgentiua for beef can'be -completed, and the meat' •landed in Great Britain.'in twenty-four idays, ,'whdreas it is fully sixty days before it con 4se completed froin' Queensland. How, however, wo are coming to the 1910 Beason,- there is plenty of surplns cattlo Again in Queensland, and it looks as if the freezing works are lo havo the longest Tun on record. Everything depends upon whether-owners will lie prepared.to. accept a price which it will pay the exporters to give. London prices do not justify big prices, and in the interests of the stockowners we strongly'advise them to help; tho meat works to run continuously. This would mean economy in the working and thus put thoni in: the position to price for tho beef. This ad'vice may not.be palatable, but it is good sound :business, advice, and.it would.be wise to follow.it, otherwise the trade will never, be recovered. .'..'-'..-

OATS FOR EXPORT.- : ". POSITION THIS .TEAK. "'- .The:': North Island has in the vpast Called for large amounts of oats from Southland for its requirements, but with .the development of land caused throughthe opening-up of ihe Jlain Trunk Railway' it is becoming , apparent '• that the quantities of the grain..dispatched lo the North Island will , grow less and less every;year. Southlanders, says the. Invercargill'"Times," will, therefore, have •to rely upon the Homo markets for disposal ,of ■'■their produce; Last year tho exports-to London of Ne\y Zealand-grown oats reached a very ' high figure, and i Southland did a good share of tho business. .The calls from the London market were the, means of coning with tho glut : of. oats in the Dominion, and •whereas Is.'would probably have been the price if sales were confined to New Zealand, the export. , ! made an average % price-of Is. 7d. obtainable. For this season's.yKld the London market'is not yet defined and merchants accordingly are not ili a position to work out a price to'make offers to Southland farmers, . but ' garton oats" are nominally worth Is.' 6d. per bushel. It is anticipated, however, that London will be calling for oats, nud in that case the quotations are likely to. lie maintained at least up to last year's average.

At .the meeting of farmers held at Duntfoon lust week to discusa the railway penalties on overweight grain sacks, Mr...Wilson said he had 129 sacks of grain overweight varying from 291b. to 41b., and 42-4 .sacks correct or underweight, and he was penalised JEB2 3s. Cd. (or 3s'. 7d. per bushel) on the 129 eacks overweight. '- ' Tho dairy produce shipped from Tarunaki in February amounted to 22,030 packages of bu'.'.er, valued at .£G:!,a3G. and 7116 " packages of cheese, valued at .£24,906. ■ -Lnst ytrai- tho figures were: Butter, 22,511 packages value X5'J,275; and cheese;-5252 value JC18,352. 1