COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1321, 27 December 1911, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Illtlll •COMMtr'.-.lOXKli't' CAIJI.KUIJAM. 'I'lii , CiniiiiieiTo anil Tourists' Division of the- department- ol A?rieiiHure. Co-iimcm-, him) 'I'linrii'ts lias received the follov.-iiii; i-i<!ili.ertun Troiii the Hifh Couimis-ioiioi-lor >,i'«- /calami, ilatcd I;onrton, liccciu-"'Mnilnu.-Thi- mnrkot-ifi-flrm. a'ituousli \ I here a (lull ?alr for alt uualities. owinj; | k> Christinas, at. aboiit. nuotaiion.'- already i (riven-. CanUirimry, '.itl. per Ib.j Xoith It- | iund. '.il. ■)«•!• Hi. ! Ijairh.- Tin-, market- is strady. Araentino fliipmcnts n.p<» iniTca?iii? .ICO per cent.; no I chaiiß , . , in iirii-f-.. Hcqr.-Tiie niiirfict i.< linn, l'rosppi't.i are favourable. IT is rnported that the Aini'Vl--1.3H o.liiHetl tiailn .-ompotition i- at an end. Now KcrilinMl himls. 3frt. per lb.; fore?, ?M. per Ilj. Demand for Christinas: I'i-i--c; , Uiivc t'ectinc'l. as thn demand is cxpivlotl to fall off after Cliristmns on. ai-coum i>! hij-ll jirit'C. Hut tei.— The average-price tor the week for rlioi'-e.-t .N'c'iv ZMbml biiltti' i- 'iif-r ewt.l, :r:K: Australian,, j2st-..; Argentina, ■IJ-v.i- J.'anitli, 5355. : Hibpriaii.. 122-. Chco'-i'.-The market-i.-' firm, with hardening tendency. The uverogc prii-e Tor t'lo week for finest Xcv.- Zealand chce.-e jicr V-wt. ii 70a. ffemp.-Tlio maj'lict is' iteady. .There is a bcUer demand [or hemp. • -New Zeai.iud cooil fr.ir, spot, per ton. XSfl; Xcw Zealand fair, grade. £19 10;.; fair rurrent jranila. .€2O 10s.: Ja-nuorr.-tfl March i'liipinciito: '/oiiland Rood fair, £20 lfs.; >"c\v Zcalhnrl f:iir (rrade. £19 10-:.; fair ■cuiTMit Manila, £21. 'ITie output from 'Manila..for the «e?!< was 29.K0 balc^. fl'ojl.—The market is fjuiot, but firm. Xo 'change in prices. YOKOHAMA SPECIE-BASK. During September last accredited representative? of the Yokohama -Specie Bank conducted in .Melbourne a.r.d other Australian . capitals investigaticins. witJi the object'of tlic establishment of branches of tho hank in the. Commonwealth. The institution apparently contemplates an expnnsion.of it... field of operations also in utlicr countries for it .i=.announced t.ta.it. tho bank has decided to partk'iintc in i'o-opei'.ltio», t-i ,'ianic . extent, widi lliu Nippon Yusen in the trade between India 'nild the Far Erf!,. The b.inlt lins ppep.cd a branch in. Calcutta, whilst-the .shipping.company ha: .inaugurated a fortnißhtly _service between Calcutta anil Shanghai, and is acceptin™. ilirough ea-rRo for China, .Manchiirh, Japan, the chief ports of the western eoas'.of Amciic.i, and tlyi yi'inrinsl ports.nf Australia. The serine! to this "eueroachnient." is. a rate war the o.DtTOme of which ik awaited wilh considerable interest ,in the L'ast. The fira. arrival o.f a Kippon Yincii K.lislia boat at Calcutta was followed by the issue by. the British India aiuhthe. Asiatic .Steam NaviKiition Companies of a riroular to all shipper.? under contract with them announcing a reduction of 50 per rent, in freights to l!a.iiKoon by the itoamcr preceding and tho cti.'amer foMoivinß lbc Jinicn Jfam, the first ot the Japanese steamer*. Tlii= reduction w.1.5 made subject to a proviso Llia-t no Kood? were shippsd by tbo?o.shippers by tin; Japaiif so boat, ainl the' cin-u----lar -i'oncludcd with the statement —"The pxiFtinir frcJßht contracts are binding, and if broken debar tbinpers from parlif-ipaf-m!! iu the contract rate?- '.-v suhFc(!U"nt 51.53-nicrs. and Ihe nbjes-t or {ho foregoins concession to the compa-iies' siippovtevs'i« lo nvoid (heir bpinc: put on nncoiial with their would-be competitor?." These ta_«'.tics have drawn from :he agents of the .Nippon Yiis<mi Knhha t';o aniiounrcmr'iit thuf they have come to assist and iuvrnete the trade of Ucnijal ivitli the Kast for , f.i'.!cult.i hn-s been 100 lon~ liai'di. capped by the existence of ,1 innnon-ily inimical tu the interests ol the port" AIiUMIXICM. Orciproduction h-fs had 3 depressing infilicnco. on prices for aluminium for t-ome timc'po-it, aud the exis,ti=.s st-i-te of- alTaira is rcsn.rded as serious from the viewpoint of manufacturers. At present levels, aluminium is decidedly cheaper that copper, and this is. rsulting in the laxce British . ivect-riral companies contract-ing for increased 3upplic!>.' Contirisutal' producers are much keener sellers than the English, ■who do iio.t iccnal all anxious to book r.t preicnt prices. Jt, 13 a difficult matter to , estimate the . cpjt or, production, quit" a number of factors which vary with company• entering -into- the , ma'!cr -uch a.i power ccfrt, bauxite fiipplies', ailowances mace for dfpreniation of plant during pre- • Ticus years, etc.. but it may fcc'-Mfclv tstimated tils/, at, say, £iS to f'«i) p e > ton, most work? will have reached the lowest level at whteli they cau sell wh.hout bsms , faced with actual b« necmi fiuotations' in London indiciir" that th"' mrtrsin of Eafcty has been reduced to rfis" .appearing point, the market, after touching Lib J--> i>s; per ton tor.-ard? the end ofSeptember, dropping back to £51 to £53 per