COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1824, 9 August 1913, Page 8

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

INVESTMENT SHARES A Mil a of Wellington Trucit and Lean at £7 l.?. 6d. was .the only transaction recorded yesterday. The Quotations were as under; Buyers. Sellers. £ a. d. £ p. d Bonk Now Zealand 10 2 6 10 10 0 National Bank 5 3 6 — Metropolitan Building .... . — 12 7 6 N.Z. Lonn and Merc 0 10 4 — Wellington Investment ... — 011 8 Well. Trust and Loon 7 13 — Ohristchurch Gas — 7 5 0 National Insurance 2 6 6 — Meat Export (525. 6d.) o 0 0 — Now Zealand Shipping ... — 16 2 6 Well. Woollen lord.) 3 13 0 — '■ Westport Coal 1v 7 9 — Golden Bay Cement — 10 0 Manning and Co 4 4 0 — Sharland's preference .... — 119 Ward an<V Co 4 19 6 5 1 0 W.V.C.A. (£5) - 7 2 6 W.F.C.A. (£1) - 18 3 THE BUTTER MARKET. Those interested in the dairy industry aro beginning to wonder what the price of butter will bo this season. It in usual for tho buyers to bo in evidence in August— laet year by this time tentative offers were bcins made, but this year tihere docs not appear to be tho same eagerness to enter irjto contracts. The fact of the matter appears to be that bwers are uncertain of the future of the market. Values for the very highest grades of butter will probably be maintained, or if the.v fall, the d'ooline will not amount to very much, provided the quantity is within small compass. But when we come to coni-ider tho prospcots of butter below first Erode tho position becomes norplexing.. The Siberian output luia been very large, and a ccniiidera-ble quantity is gcinp into cold store. Australia- will this season have n large iiX'roa?e, as the weather conditions have been favcuraMe. Competing with butter is tho huge manufacture of margarine. which it> now of a quality to deceive eytin experts. The consumption of ma.Tga.rino is now large, and the consumption Mb besn stipulated by the .high price of butter. The bie consumption of margarine and tho incrcawJ output of secondary butter may. probably will, affect the price of choicest, consequently buyers are perplexed and scarcely know what to do. However, in (lie course of a few days, action of some sort is sure to be total by lbs (toalere. Cheese promises to maintain a good market. The Canadian output lu'.s been short, and the local consumption ban rondo inroad;) into stoclin. The liieh price oT clioc?n will probably lrad H> o. very large increase in the New Zealand out, put. N.i many of -the ffli-tories with dual pJnjitj will bo ftWo to turn to n h t.n y-

AMERICAN MEAT SUPPLY. That tho United States will presently have to rely upon imported incat seems very obvious. It will bo beot that will be wanted, and just what New Zealand cannot supply, and therefore we neod not fear tho machinations of the Beef Trust. In the annua' report of the U.S.A. Bureau of Animal Industry, thero appears tho following:— "Tho situation recordine our beef eunDly lias been a fruitful caure for alarm in recent years. During tho present year it reached an acute stase, as indicated by tho fact that t.hc hichest prices ever known wore paid for cattle at our etcck centres this East summer. We no longer have _t-lie former abundant supplies of cattlo raised cheaply on tho free ranee. Tho ranyo is bciinc cwt up and fenced off into farms or divortcfl to sheen trrazins. In addition* there is the great increase in tho prico of corn aiul other feeds, which irad-3 cattte feeding a risky and expeiasive. undertaking, especially as for n, considerable time the prices received were unsatisfactory from tho feodeT's standpoint. For these various reasons cattilo raisins went into die-favour, and the nresent greatly restricted supply is the result. "The home demand for beef, on the other hand, has been increasing along with t.ho Dopulation. According to the census wo have 29.CC0.WX) more peiulc to feed than we had twenty years aro. Americans oro sreat mcat-catci®. A recent estimate made in this bureau shows the annual coneumnti'on of moat per head of the population' to be 1621b.. of w.hich. beef constitutes EOlb. and veal 741b. This ic about 251b. per head creator than tho British consumption of beef and voa.l, and • approximately 4Clb. creator than that of Franco and Germany. "It lis iinOTitoble. therefore, that our beef should have become scaxcc and tho prices hi*h, and that dur former larce exDOTt trade should have dwindled to almost WDthkiE. It is a Eimple businens nropofiticn that when tho home market demands practically out entire output at priceß eou-il to or better than foreien. there will be littlo or no exporting." Cirtbms duties collected at the port of WcWuirfcoa yesterday amounted to £4879 Ts. Jd. OANTEPBUHY MAKKETS. (By Telecraph— From Association.) Chrlstcliureh, August 8. Thero is no chance to note in the fit ate of tho local trroin market, but an improvement is hoped for after next week's holidays. Potatoes havo further declined. <md £2 ait country stations i 0 m»y tho best price offered. It was hoped that, when the price gat down to this level,' business misrht bo done with Sydiney. but the market thero has declined £1 per ton on the week, so that tho position has not improved so far as an outlet for surplus stocks is concerned. Onions have dropped from £7 to £5 to £5 10s. per ton. The hish price ruling here has caused large coiih eicnments to be Eent over from Victoria-, and tliet® ore now supplying the North Island tuid Dunadin markets.

VIOTOEIAN PRODUCE MARKETS. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright Melbourne, August 8. Wheat, 3s. Bid. to 3s. 9d. 'Flour, £8 15s. Oarts. 2s. to 2s. 3id. Barley—English, 3s: 9d. to 4s. Id.; Oape, 2s. lid. to 3s. 2d. Maize, is. 6d. to 3s. £d. Bran and pollard, £4 lEi3. Potatoes, £2 to £3. Onions, £6. BANK OP ENGLAND RETUKNS. (Rec. August 8, 8.5 p.m.). London, -August 8. The Bank of England return issued for the week ended Wednesday, August 6, is as under:— Issue Df.iuetme 1 )? Not«Im« £66,269,000 Gov.debt ... £11,015,000 Other Btcuritio3 7,<34.000 Goli 37.820.000 *58.269,003 £56,269.000 BiSKDJa Department. Pronators' Govt, securlcapital £H.M3,OM ties £12,757,000 Publio da- Other s«curlposits ... 9,350.000 . ties ..26,958,000 Other doposits ... 50.823.000 ■. Notaj ... 26,313,003 Best, 7-day .. and other bills.;. ... 3,526.000 Coin... ...1,104.000 £67 252,G00 ' , • £67,952,00(j The leading Items of the.Bank of England return aCord the following comparison :— This weak Last weok Last yoar £ £ £ Bullion ... ... 37,620,000 37,744,000 38.340.003 Reserve 27.f07.000 27.877,000 . 28.154,UC0 Note circulation 20.956,003 29.758.000 29.958.1XJ0 Publio Deposits 9.330.000 10.937,000 16,"617.000 Othor Deposits 30,823,000 40,832.000 41,301,000 Proportion of reservo to liabilities... . 65.00 63.84 48.60

GOVERNMENT SECURITIES.; The following are tbo latest quotations for Government securities, with, a comparison of those ruling last week:—

BANK RATES OP INTEREST. The Bank of England raw was. on February 8, 19!2, rcduccd from 4 to 3i per cent., and on May 9 it was further rcduccd to 3 nor cent. On Aucust 29 it was raised to 4 per ccnt.. nnd on. October 17 to 5 per cent. It was. reduced to 4i per cent, on April 17. 1913. The Bank of Franco rate was rcduccd from 35 to o per cent, on January 23. 1906, and continued at tho latter figure until September 12. 1911, when it was raised to 3i per cent. On May 17, 1912, it was reduced to 3 per cent., on October 17 it was raised to 3j per cent., and on October 30 to 4 por cent. . MARKET RATES 0? DISCOUNT. Tho following are the market rates for best 'three months' bills.;— London Parit Berlin rato. rate. rate, per per u per cent. cent. cent-. This week 3 15-16 33 4 3-8 Last week 41-16 33 43 Last yoar ;.. 215-16 23-8 33. Short loans are quoted at 25 per. cent., as against 31. per ccnt. last , week, and 2i per cent, last year. ' COLONIAL AND OTHER PRODUCE. Wlicat—The market is dull; 375. 6d. ia asked for Wec-t Australian* off coat!,; 375. 3d. is asked for Souith Australian, February shipment, and 365. for March-Juno; 375. lid. for Victorian, per August steamer; 365. lid. is ottered for Australian new crop, Dccember-January Bliipmemt. Australian, on spot, is nominally unchanged. Flour i:s auiet. Australian afloat is ouoted at 275?. Oats are dull. La Plata, July-August shipment, 16s. Beans* and pons are auiot. bu/t ilrm. Butter is quiet and unchanged. Tho Quotations for colonial aTc nominal. The market is greatly over-sunnlied with secondaries, which are arriving freely from the Continent. It ia etatod that ovor 100, COO casks have been stored at St. Petersburg. Cheeso , n 's firm And unchanged. Bacon is firm. Australian flitches. 68s. to 725. Sugar. German beet. 88 per cent, net tit.re, 4d. hijshcr, at 9s. Id.; first marks, grr-awmatcd, f.o.b. Ikimbure, 3d. higher, at 12s. 3d. Bradford Tops.-—Tho morket is quiet and prices arc unchanged,. Sixty-fours, 294c1.; miner eixt.ics. 295.; common sixties, 28d. to 2GM.; fifty-sixes, 223 d.: fifties. 203 d.; fortyfaxes. 163 d.;' forties. 153 d.

THE METAL MARKETS. Copper.—On spot. 17s. 6d. higher, at £68 per ton; oloct,rolyt,ic, 455. hieher, at £7110s. Tin —On spot, £4 10s. hiirher, at £186 10s. per ton; thrc-a months', £186 ss. PJc-iraih—Middtoboro' No. 3. Id. higher, at- 555. Id. per toik Lead, eoft fcrcieiv. 7a. 6d. higher, at £20 17*. 6d. per ton. Spelter, £20 10a. per ton-.

Variation _ ' compaied Pries. with • • ; last week. N £ «. d. ' 2J% Imperial Consols 73 15 0 15s higher 4 ,.N.8.\V. 1933 Jan.-July 100 0 0 Unchanged ■84 „N.S.W.1930-50Mr.-Sp 90 0 0 !20s lower 3i „N.S.W.-1930-50 69 0 0 Unchanged 3 „N.S.W. 19-25Apl.-Oct 82 0 0 Unchanged 4 .Vic. 1920Jan.-July GO 0 0 Unchanged 8i „ Vic. 1021*6 Jan.-July 02 0 0 Unchanged 3i „Vic,-I029-«J9 90 0 0 'Unchanged 3 „ Vic. 1929-49Jan.-July 77 0 0 Unchanged 3i „S,A. 1916Jan.-July 89 0 0. Unchanged 3 „8.A. lillG Jan.-July 73 0 0 Unchanged 4, ,.Q'l'dl915-24 Jan.-July 100 0 0 Unchanged 35 „ Q , l'dl922*47Jan.-July 03 0 0 Unchanged 3 fl QTdl922-47Jan.-Juiy 77 0 0 Unchanged 4 ,.N.Z. 1929 May-No v. 100 0 0 Unchangod 3i „N.Z. 1012-40Jan.-July 00 0 0 Unuhangod 3 „N.Z. lt'20 April-Oct. 77 0 0 Unchanged 3i „\Y.A.1015-35 May-Nov SS 0 0 Unchanged 3 „W.A, 1015-55May-Xov fcO 0 0 Unchanged 3J JWOJan.-July . £8 0 0. Unchanged 3 ,/1'as. 1023-40 Jan.-July til O 0 Unchanged