COMMERCIAL ITEMS

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1062, 27 February 1911, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS

■INVESTMENT SHAKES. . A' sale of Christchurch Gas at £9 17s. 6d. ra tho only transaction recorded on Saturday. \ Tho,buying and selling quotations were as under:— . ■ Buyers. Sellers £ s. d. £ s. d. National Bunk 5 19 0 , - Equitable Building 915 0 10 0 0 Metropolitan 12 0 0' - National Mortgago — 3 5 0 Wellington Investment ... — 011 o Well. Trust and Loan ... 7 12 .0 ' — Christchurch Gas 917 0 10 0 0 Napier Gas :.. 12 0 0 — Palmorston Gas al7 6 — Well. Gas (£6 155.)... 13 12 6 - N.Z. Insurance ...... ■ — < 5 ° Gear Meat (£1) 3 3 0 ■ — Union Steam i 117 3 - Well. Woollen Jord.) ... '-•, <J \ Well. Wooden (prof.) 216 J 5° • ° Taupiri Coal '..,'...;...'1 • 1 ° ."T'n. Wostport Coal .;....; .-.. .-'. J A 9-Lcyland-O'Bricn i... .-r 17 0 Manning and Co :. i 10 0 ■ — Htramar, Ltd. :. - . ■ ■■£•.*•£. TaranaUl.'Petroleum ,0 12 9 01J 6 Tarlngainutu'Totara. :... .— ..;. *; l) . u LONDON MOSEY MARKET. Tho London money market ia not without its interesting features. Judging by Uio last financial cablo messages. Thereis apparently a scarcity of funds in tho short loan market., for. tho,rata has. advanced from 25 por,.cent.'.to 3 0 .per.cent., this rate being tho famous 'that'Quoted for threo monthV, bills, which, also thnws a slight advance. Tho: trouble anse3 from tho transfor of. deposits.from ono account to another. Tim Government deposits show an increase of ovor three millions sterling, while tho other deposits have decreased by over £1,20D.C00. Tho total dc-pceiU'-a'ro more than they were a#wccßago, but the bankers who furnish tho funds for tho short loan market and for the billbroken have not ouilo so much available for tho purpose. Another disturbing factor ia the heavy-commitments of British investors and in a minor degrco cr Herman and French investors for loan*?, etc., inado to foreign countries last year, bo far as London is concerned a period of temporary easo may bo anticipated' from Iho -[act that there will bo a largo influx of visitors for, tho Coronatidh, and whoso letters of credit will, in tho aggregate amount to a very largo sum. In tho meanwhile a tightness may bo'cipcrlenccd neit month owing to it being tho end of the first quarter.

COLONIAL T7OOL TRADE. . . Messrs. Holmuth, SchwarUo and Co. furnish a statement of the colonial wool trade Binco 1660 (51 years)*,from: which.tho,following summary. has been taken.- ,;Tho; valuo last year was '£(5,505,000,' or £5,165,000 more than in 1909, which was then a record.' Since 1901, when wool was lower in value than ever before recorded, tho price has gained nearly 60 per cent., and tho total valuo has much more than doubled:— Average Australasian Capo value. Total Tear. bales, balea. £ value. 1860 187,000 • 79,000 ' 253 6.8E0.CC0 1870' 546,003 152.CC0 161 11,691,000 1800 669,000 219.CT0 2Ci 22,032,000 U9O I.UI.CCO WB,OOO 14J 25.C60.C00 1697 1,834,000 274.0C0 ■ 111 ■■ 24,242,000 1899 1,641.000 267.0C0 14J 27.665,000 19D1 1J45.0C0 217,000 - 10* • 20.601.0C0 1907 2.1C3.00D 287.0C0 16$ 39.435.CC0 1908 ......... 2.072.C00 276,000 13J 31.U1.0C0 1909 2,296,000 380,000 15 40.140.0C0 19101 :„•• 2,411.0Cf1':: 377.000. . 161 • .45,M5,CC0 JIABINE INSTJBAXCE TIME AGREEMENT.. Marino insurance was .unprofitable in 1910. According to mail reports, from 19C4 onwards has been ono. of leanness, while in many caseE the wrong side of tho ledger has been'reached. This has arisen from fierce competition among underwriters and from tho fact that tho volume of business was not sufficient, to feed all those engaged in it. Just before tho last mail left London an agreement was come to by the heads of tho "time" market to make an-, other effort to lift tho hulls .-f steamers on to a paying basis, and the agreement which is binding from January 5 was signed, by tho underwriters of tho leading marine Insuranco 'companies and a very largo number of thoso at Lloyd's. Tho agreement is as follows:—During tho last 10 years, taklns into consideration tho reduction in values, tho rate of premium on tramp steamers 1m fallen .to per cent. This has roultcd in a,very considerable, loss to underwriters, and tho partially successful attempt to raise the, premium in 1909 and 1910 has proved to be insufficient. Tho avcrago rate now paid is still below that of 1905, since which year thi3 class of business has resulted in loss. It io, there; fore, agreed that an advance in premium of. 10 per .cent." bo raado on all . tramp steamcrßi and that a further advance ho imposed on nil fleets, or vessels where tho results havo been unsatisfactory. In cases whero.. valued aro reduced, a proportionate Increase in the premium shall bo imposed. The agreement is binding in tho case of all, tramp 6tcamers. British and foreign, whether insured all risks or f.p.a. absolutely. It is suggested that whero thcro io room for doubt whether certain steamers nro tramps, tho leading underwriters on last year's slip should confer beforo writing. The 10 per cent, advance is a minimum only, and a still further advance is to bo made where losses and claims havo been unusually heavy. On rates of 10 guineas per cent, ordinary and over, underwriters to havo tho option of continuing at one guinea extra.

"•• CUSTOMS ItEVENUE. ' Tho Customs rcvenuo collected at tho port nf Wellington on Saturday totalled £2510 3«. 3d., tho amount for tho week bring £27,001. Compared with tho corresponding period? of last year, tho receipts for the past eight weeks show as under:— 1911. 1910. Week to , . ' £ £ January "7 ■.".'...:....:....„"..";..'."."""8.1« - 10,599 January 14 24.074 17,699 January 21 '. 9.439 7.«5 January 28 25,246 ?n.J*6 February. 4 IJ.9W u,tf« February 11 7.372 21.467 February 18 ~..;.....;.. 21006 9.3W February 25 ~. 27.C01 18,939 XI3MS9 £117.196 Tho beer duty for the week tot.illod £?01 Bs., as compared with £235 2s. Bd. for the corresponding week of last year. TIIE MKTAIi MAP.KETB. Dy Telegraph—Press Association-Copyright dice. February 26, 5.5 p.m.) London, February 25. Yesterday's closing Quotations wcro as follow:— i ' .. .. • Copper.-On'spot. £54 15s. per ton: three months'. £55 Bs. 9d.; electrolytic, £57 sa. Tln.-On spot. £195 per ton; three months', £188. . Lead.—Soft, foreign, £13 5?. per ton. LONDON MARKETS. Bj Tcleiraph-l'rcss Assiii-lctlon-Rnpyrlch'.. (Hoc. February 26. 5.5 p.m.) • :■••■. . London, February 25. Wheat.—A cargo of Australian old wheat sold at 335. 6d.-per quarter and ,5500 tons, South Australian, February ihipment, at 3i». 9d. I

Jlenip is steady and unchanged. ; Copra—The market is flat; South Sea, in hags, £25 2s. 6d: per ton. • •■ Cotton.—Tho Liverpool quotation for 'niddline Upland fmvricnn cotton is 7.3Jd. per lb. / Kubbor.—Fine, hard Para rubber is quoted at 6s. lid. per lb.