COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1087, 28 March 1911, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

■ INVESTJIKXT SHAKER. Sales of Metropolitan Building aL £12 10s.. and Xev.- /.c.ilan'! Paper Mills nl 2Ls. 9d. were recorded yesterday. The liuyinc and yelling quotations wcro as under:— &L'lU;ra ji a, (l. £ a. d. Hank of New Zealand ... 11 5 0 — National Hank — 6 2 0 N.Z. Loan and .Mcrcantilo 0 10 0 0 10 6 Well. Investment 0 110 0 11 6 Fcilding (las 1 1 'J llokitika (las — 5 '6 C Well. Gas (£7) 13 15 0 - N.Z. Insurance 4 7 0 .Standard Insurance 18 0 — Christciiuich Meat 16 5 0 17 0 0 Gear Meat (205.) 3 6 0 — Meat Export (£sl 6 8 0 — Meat Export (£4) 5 4 0 — Moat Export (525. 6(1.) 3 2 0 — N. 2. Shipping — 13 0 0 Union Steam 1 18 0 — Kaiapoi Woollen 5 5 0 — Well. Woollen (prof.) 2 13 6 3 1 0 Taupiri Coat 1 1 & ~ , Vv'estport Coal 19 0 19 6 Leyland-O'Brien 1 6 G Miramar, Ltd — 0 2 6 N.Z. Con. Dental 12 6 — N.Z. Drug 2 9 0 - Sharland'y ordinary — 14 0 "Ward and Co 4 19 0 5 0 6 Wilson's Cement (ovd.\ ... 2 0 6 — Wilson's Cement (prof.)... 2 2 0 — THE PRODUCE MARKETS. The quotations for butter in Tooley Street arc unchanged fcr the week. Choicest colonial butter is said to be firm, but for second Quality the market is weak and inactive. The Quotation for choice?t Nov; Zealand is 1065., while a yc?.r ago the price was 1225. Thero is now very little chance of seeing higher prices, because there is an accumulation of second grade butter, and Australia is likely to continue exporting for the next three months. Furthermore, Danish and Siberian 6upplien will now show expansion, ar.d Irish butler has to bo reckoned with. The reports of the consigning factories at the end of the season will bo interesting reading. Cheese, remains firm at 605., the same r.s in tho previous week, the quotation being for both white and coloured, while a year aen white was selling at 625. and "coloured at 60s. 6d. • Tho frozen moat market is unsatisfactory as regards mutton and lamb. The low quotations for mutton havo stimulated demand, but it is obvious that, with the accumulation of lamb, values cannot rite. There is apparently a poor outlook for lamb. Some time ago it was stated that somo of tho London stores were consorted, yet sellers were able to maintain prices at a fair level: but stocks are evidently now getting beyond control, and a drop in values scums inevitable. Beef and pork are firm, but these are just the nroducts that New Zealand is unable to suddlv to any extent. The spot price of New Zealand hemp has dropped ICg. to £20 per ton, and fair current Manila- has declined ss. per ton to £19 ss. It seems that an average of about £20 per ton c.i.f. London is about all that our millers can reckon upon, nnd the price barely leaves a margin of profit. If £20 per ton can be relied upon, it is not unlikely that improvements and economies could bo effected so as to inereace the margin of profit, but the menace is Manila.. The output from Manila, last week was 33,000 bales, and. in the week previous, 28,Ct0 bales, and the increase of 10,000 balea knocked lCs. off the price of Incy/- Zealand hemp. Millers should cive Gome attention to the production of the Philippines, present and prospective.

LLOYD'S REGISTER. Lloyd's Kesister of British and Foreien Shipping for 1910 shows that, although tho total tornage of vessels ha 3 increased, their actual number is rather loss than was tlxef ease in the previous year, owing to a decrease in tho number of failing; vessels. The total addition of steam tonnage durinir the year has been 995,342 tons cross, and. of saMiner tonnage 21,477 tons gross, or, in all, 1,016,319 tens cross. Of the tonnage added t-o tho Register nearly 93 per cent, consists of new vessels practically all built in the United Kingdom. The s?rosr. deduction of steam' tonnaso from the Register amounts to 734,910 tons, and, ol railing tonnage, to 222,740 tons ,or, in all, to 957.053 tons. Tho tonnage sold to foreign owners during 1910, which, however, includes p. considerable r.mount intended for bvcakinir-un purposes, is returned at 520,454 tons. The .countries which havo acquired tho largest amount of tonnage from the United Kingdom within the year under review arc:— Norway, 151.855 ton?; Italy, 78.1C9 tons; Germany, 67,165 tons; Greece. 45.C8J tons: France, 35,749 tons; and Spain, 35,759 ton?. In tho main, the vessels whioh are transferred to foreign owners arc not of very recent construction. Tables which are included in .the Registrar-General's returns indicate that 19 per cent, of the tonnaco removed from the Register because of foreign transfer wan built before 1035; about 33* per cent, before 1890; about 734 per cent, before 1895; over 85i per cent, before 1900; and over 95 per corit. before 190 a. In addition to the tonnage transferred to foreign flags. 65.120 tons have been transferred to British colonics during ISHO. as compared with 36.004 tons in 15C9. 3S*»2 tons in 1908, and 65,841 ton 3in 1907. It will bo understood that new vessel built in the United Kingdom directly for colonial and foreign owners are not included in these returns. On the whole, during 1910 tho number of steamers on tbc official register of the United Kingdom iV^i ncreascd , b X 2IC - a - a the tonnafc by 260,402 .tons, while the number of sa'linr* vessels has decreased by 279 and the ton" r.-aso by 201,253 tons. The total vessels on the Bolster lino, therefore decreased by" 69. a.-.d the total trnnago increased by 59,169 tons durinc the- year.

BILLS OP EXCHANGE. The Board of Trade has circularised !hc Chambers-of Commerce throughout the Lnited Kingdom asking for expressions of opinion 011 the results of the recent international conference on bii's of c-v----ehange and oil the Bill which has been drafted in order to bring about intern, ti-enal uniformity. Amongst other thines the Bill proposes to abolish "days of grace," which do not exist on the Cortinent, and in only a fen- of the Un'f-d States. (This was suggested by tho Hankers Institute a/3 far bad; as 1831.) It is also proposed to make uuiform provision for tho date of payment of a bill which matures on a. Bank Holiday or other dies non. The Sheffield and Derbv Chambers of Commerce have approved tho Bill, Birmingham Chamber of Commerce ha* approved it subject to certain amend. ment 3, and has postponed consideration of the draft uniform law until it has been accepted by foreign countries. Customs duties collected at the port of Wellington yesterday amounted to £1650 12s. FROZEN MEAT. Uy Telegraph-Press Ais-jciation-CoDyrlEh;. London, March 26. Tho Frozen Moat Trade Association's •Smithfleld market quotations far the undermentioned classes of frozen meat are bused on actual sales of not less than one hundred carcasses of mutton or lamb, or twenty-live Quarters of beef of fair average quality. Tho quotations are not for selected lines, but for parcels fairly representative of the bulk of tho 6hip. mento now on the market. Tho prices which follow are on an average a farthing per lb. more than the valuo ex ship, this difference representing an average cost in cxpen=es. handling, conveyance, and celling tho meat:— Mar. 18. Mar. 25. d. d. Mutton:— Canterbury, light — —. Canterbury, medium — — Canterbury, her.vy — — Southland — . — North Island, best 35 • 3'. North Island, ordinary... 31 • 31 Australian, light 21J-15 213-16 Australian,' heavy 211-16 '211-15 Itivcr Plate, light 31 35 Eiver Plate, heavy 23 2J North Island owes, 2 !l-16d.; Australian ewes, 23d.; and Eiver Plate ewes, 23d. Lamb:— Canterbury, light 51 5 Canterbury, medium 51 51 Canterbury, heavy 5J Si North Island, selected ... 45 <U North Island, ordinary... 43 <1 Australian, best 4 33 Australian, fair 22 3£ Australian, inferior 3H 3i River Plate, firsts 3j 4 Eiver Plate, seconds — 33 Beef :— New Zealand, ox fores ... 3 3 New Zealand, ox binds... 3i( 4 Australian, ox fores "3 213-16 Australian, ox hinds 33 Jtiver Plate, ox fores ... ?. 15-16 3 River Plate, ox hinds v . 33 43 Itivcr Plate chilled beef, fores, 3id.: hinds, 43d. Ilabbits arc slow of sale. Best larcc S.vdnc.yfi, cx store, 14s. 6d.; small, lis.; Victorians, about a shilling less. HIDES, LEATHER. AND BASILS. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright London, March 26. Hides—Small business. Leather is neglccLod. First Wellingtons. 17! d. Basils.—Prices unchanged. HIGH COMMISSIONER'S CABLE. The Commerce ami Tourists Division ot the Department o[ Agriculture, Commerce, and Tourists has received tho following cablegram from the High Commissioner for New Zealand, dated London March 25. 1911:(Note.—Quotations. unless other wi-G specified, are average market prlisj en 1 spot.)

j.tu+tnu.—Tho market, is mr.ct: there baa been more inclination to nr.r.-haso mutton during tho p.ist wee!; on ai'cjunt of tlic low* jjrioc. Canterbury, (nominal): Sorth Island, Si;!. (:i small supply). Lamb.—Tho market beeswing more depressed on nccouut <>f (ho sJock accumulating. Canterbury, 5d.: oilier than Canlerbury. 4'/J. per lb. Bcsf.—The market/ U firm. Kupphes of American chillcd beef arc small. New Zealand hinds. ■Id.; fore?. 3J.d. Per lb. Por>.—T ! *c marine is firmer at s? s d. per lb. Butter.-The market remain? firm for best rjuuiitv, but weak and inactive Tor rccoui! clarvs ciualit-w Choicest New Holland butter, Ufis.; D.mihii, 120.?.; Siberian, 1G2.-.: Australian. 102;". per cwt. Chccre.—The market remains firm. New Zealand whits and coloured, 60?. per cwt. Hemp.—Tlie market, i* slightly weaker with lcrs demand. New Zealand good fair on Ljiot, per ton. £20; fair grade. £19 IDs.: fyir current Manila, £19 5 1 ?. Forward shipment at the same price. Output from Manila for tho week was 3J3.CCO bales. Cocksfoot Seed.—The market is firm with an improved demand. _ Wool.—Tho market is strong in tone owing to the business which has b-:en done. LONDON WOOL SALES. Messrs. Levin and Co.. Ltd.. have received bv cable the following priccs o* wool sold at the London sale*? now current:— Broadkncls over W. Paimerston North, 10 11-lCd.; Kawa Kawa, Martinboroueh. 9 7-16 d.; Matahiwi, Masterton. 9 15-16 d.; Tild.erslie, Oamaru, 9£d.; JFIt over Burnside. OamarUt 8 13-16 d.; GM over Burnsidc, MasteTton. 9 3-16 c!.; Waimahoe. Waikanac. 9 13-16 d.; To Taumata, Pnliiatua, 9M.: Marahau, Wangar.ui, 9 l-16d.f Delta, Blonheim, il 3 d.; WBW, Wanganui, 9d.; Huia. Bulls, 9d.