COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1924, 5 December 1913, Page 10

COMMERCIAL ITEMS.

INVESTMENT SHAKES. The transactions in investment eharets yesterday were: Union Steam, ordinary, at Z"s. 6(1., and preference at 19s. 6d. The quotations -were as under:--Buyera. PeltoT.f. £ s. il. £ s. d Bank of New Zealand ... - 10 17 6 National Bank - 5 8 0 N-.'/,. anil Kivcr I'late - 2 0 1! Well" Investment 0 11 9 I Well. Trust anil Loan ...7 5 6 7 5 0 Cliristchnrch ' C-as 6 "3 0 6 19 0 Well, (las (£10) 16 15 n 17 5 0 N'ationul Insurance 2 10 6 — N.Z. lnsuraii.ee -• • 514 6 dear Heat (£4) 13 5 0 - Horn- Meat (£1) 3 9 0 — Union Hlcaui (ord.) — 14 9 Union Steam (pvef.! — fl 19 9 V. M. Hanks, hid - ■ 3 3 9 N.Z. Con. Dental 10 9 Whiteombe and' Tombs ... - 7 10 ''*■ WOOL SALES. Tlio first of the local wool sales will bo held to-dav in tho Concert Chamber of the Town Hall, when about 10.000 balej will bo offered Ijy the associated brokers. The November sale had to bo nostponed because of the strike. BItrTISE POSTAL DEPARTMENT. Owing; to tlio unrest in the British Postal Department, the annual report of the Post-master-General for the year ended March 31 last i.«, interesting. The report mentions, inter alia, that during the liret nino months of tho operation of tho National Insurance Act nearly JC12.000.C00 .worth of, health insurance stamps, in addition to more than £1,000.000 worth of nncmployment stamps, were sold through tho post .offices. Over 50,000,000 forms and cards were distributed by the Department, tho weight of tho consignments handled being 3Z4 tons. Tbo oftice, moreover, inado 49.575.0 CC payments to old ago pensioners, tho sum disbursed being £12,130,600. In 1911.12 the volume of business was swollen by tho Coronation; utili tlio aggregate of ttu> Icftrtrs,. postcards, newspapais, eto., •dealt with,- ab-.5,608,EC0,C00, was 2.3 per cent, in escess o£ tlmt for the immediately preceding twelvo month?, a dcrlinc of 7 per •■(ir.i in Dostcards being the first mo-vement

of that kind rcconleil Tor many years past. In tho Savings Hank Department, the geneva] prosperity of Die country during Iho term under review la rcUcctod, tho amount deposited having exceeded the sum withdrawn by £1,327,050. at, £50,703.900. Apart Ironi tho period in 1911. when public alavni occasioned by the failure of other institutions diverted deposits to tho havings banks, tho excess recorded during 1912-1913 is largoi- than that of any year since 1901, and in the opinion of the Posmta.sterGeneral it would 'have been still larger but for the coal workers' strike in the. spring of 1912, nnd the subseciucnt. industrial unrest. The net revenue earned by the postal branch was £20,878,886, which wan en inci-ensn of £817.76.1 on that of tho previous year; the expenditure amounting to £14,. 885,273, or £569,003 more than in 1911-1912. Telciraph income at £3,167.410 showed all increase of £19.705, and the telephone revenue wis £5,785,701. that being a gain of £2,822,9'i3 on Iho 1311-191!! figures in thai branch. On the telegrnph service, however, thcro was a net loss of £957,600, as against X1.287.2Ci) a. year earlier, and tho not return from telephone businwj was £170.000 better, at £390,1C0. The commercial progress or wireless telegraphy is indicated by the fact, that the number of radio-tele-grams dealt with by the Department was 61,100, as compared with <4,5C0 in the previous year, a numerical expansion of 15 per cent. KAURI TIMBER COMPANY. For the twelve months ended August 31, the Kauri Timber, Ltd., shows net. profits of £52.556, as compared with £59,519 in the preceding term; but on this occasion about £iO,COO mor» has bpon Drovided for depreciation. The balance available is £72,605. of which £52,650 is absorbed by dividend of 8 per cent., and bonus of 1 per cent. The carry-over is £19,955. A comparison is given below:— 1912. 1913. £ £ Paid-up capital SSS.CCO 555.CC0 Sundry creditors and bills 14,096 76,502 Due for logs 34,138 38,212 Contingency account 44,864 50,972 Insurance funds 64,771 65,642 Log reserve account 6.C30 7,974 Timber, plant, etc 549,445 689,017 Bills and sundry debtors... 73.136 76.630 Cash, etc 51,767 14,021 Shares in other companies 72,862 78,772 Gross profits 111,344 125,290 Net profits 59,519 62,555 The distribution to shareholders is the tame as that for the year 1911-12. Considerable movements are shown in the accounts, as compared with the immediately preceding balance-sheet, due to the nurchase of the business of the Jarrah Saw Mills, Ltd., in Western Australia. Liabilities now total £885,735, an increase of £76,437 en the twelvo months; while the cash items are down £77,746.. Properties, timber, plant, etc., show a corresponding expansion. XKW LAND COMPANY. This week's "Mercantile Gazette" Tccordfi the registration of tho following company:— Maractai Farms, Ltd. Registered December 3. Oflicc, Belvedere Street. Carterton. Capital. £ICO,CCO into 100,000 ehares of £1 each. Subscribers—Cartorton: W. 11. Booth, 31. if. Wolters; Wellington: A. T. Sate, J. G. "Young, M. J. Browne, A. t>. Trower, C. G. Alcorn, all 1 entire each. Objects: To purchase and acquire the business, property, nnd assets of "The Maractni Lands Subdivision, Ltd." CUSTOMS KEVENTJE. Customs duties collected at tho port o} Wellington yesterday amounted to £2897 15s. 4d. FItOZEX MEAT. Messrs. Gilbert Andersc-i and Co. (.Messrs. MelLsop, Eliott and Co., local agents), writing under date, London, October 17, report as follows:— Iloine'growri.—A restricted trade, with no life. British and Continental supplies plentiful; prices generally weaker. Beef the exception, Scotch 6id.-7d.; English, 6d.6R; Irish', sad.-6.W; Canadian, 5iAA$. Jlutton: Scotch, 71&; English, 6H-7d>; Dutch, 5Jd.-6Jd.; English owes, 5d.-sJtl. Tegs: .Scotch, 7Sd.-Bd.; 63d.-71d.; Scotch hill lambs, 6d.-7d.; but sometimes sold at 51d. to clear. Veal. 6d.-9d. Pork, 61d-Bd.; Dutch heavier. Market finished with lower prices. Frozen.—Lambs neglected, New Zealands showing signs of long storage. Mutton slow at high prices. About 220.C00 Australians arriving this month, but only 150,000 from New Zealand and Plato. Chilled beef very dear. .Supplies virtually in the hands of ono firm. P.c-cxports to the U.S.A. amount to over 8000 quarters weekly. Frozen beef is receiving full advantage and fetching high prices. Smithfield Prices. Mutton- "/481b. 48-55. 56-54 64-72. d. d. d. d. Canterbury 43 43 4J Wellington I'i 43-8 4 3-8 - Ordinary New ■Zealand 4J 55-16 45-16 - Ewes, X.Z., 48-64, 3 3-lGd.; Australian, 30-50. 33d. Australian Sheep, 30-50, 3 13-16 d.; 50-70. 3Jd.; South American, 56-72, 4Jd. Lamb- Under 36. 36-42. 42-501b. d. d. d. Canterbury 59-16 5j 5 Wellington, 5 3-D 51-16 4J Ord. New Zealand... 55 42 — BeefNew Zealand, fores, 3 3-Sd.; hinds, 4Jd. Australian, crops, 3 3-Bd.; hinde, 4Jd. South American, fores, 3 3-Bd.; hinds, lid. Chilled Beef—South American, fores, 33-Sd.; hinds, 53d. WHEAT MABKKT. Tho New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Ltd'., havo received the following cablegram from their* London house, under date December 3:—Wheat: Sold an Australian cargo at 36e. 4Jd., e.i.f. Very littlo demand, owing to favourable crops rdports. Argentina market not, likely to improve at present. LONDON WOOL SALES. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright London, December 3. There was good competition. Bast merinos ami shabbier were rather slow: crossbreds unchanged. The series closes on December 9. (Eec. December 4, 10.50 p.m.) London, Dece.mbcr 4. At the wool sales the "Tarans" qlip prices werc:-Top Hid., average 10Jd. Messrs. Dalgety and Company. Ltd.. report havim weired Vhc following cabled advice from their London office, under date December 4:—"Wool sales .eontiuuo firm, except wools in heavy condition, for which prices aro irregular. Prices are very firm for all good wools, and rather higher for scoured fine wools. Messrs. Hurray, "Roberto and Co., Ltd., havo received tho following cablegram from their London friends. Messrs. Sanderson, Murray, and Co., dated December 3:-"Lou don Wool Sales.—Compared with la«t saleß closing rates, merino, best descriptions, market very firm. Scoured merino, superior, advanced 5 per cent., Kcoured merino, medium, declined 5 per cent. Crossbred scoured, medium, market and irregular, there being no demand."

TALLOW. By Telegraph—Press Association—Coprritht London, December 3. At the tallow sales, 1278 casks were offered. 551 of which were eold. Quotations:— Mutton, fine, 375. 3d., medium, 3<!s. 6d.; beef, lino, 355. 9d.; medium, 345. WHEAT CAKGOES. London, December 3. Wheat cargoes are neglected, and are nominally. threepence lower. SILVER. London, December 3. Bar silver is quoted at 263 d. per ounce standard. LINSEED OIL AND TUEPENTINE. Linseed oil, £23 Ss. 9d. Turpentine, 31s. 9d. HIDES. By Telegraph-Press Association—Copyright (Rce. December 1. 9.20 p.m.) Melbourne, December 4. The hides market reports average supplies, and fair competition, nricss boms from 3d. to 5-Bd. lower. WEST AUSTRALIA'S CEEEALS. Perth, December 4. The Government Statist estimates the i wheal, yield at 13.669,000 bushels an avgr- ! nee of thirteen bushels to the acre; oats, I 2,32'i,000 bushels, an average ■ of sixteen [ bushels (o tho acre. AUSTRALIAN PKODTJCE MARKETS. (Rec. December 4, 9.20 p.m.) Sydney, December 4. Wheat, 3s. 6d., 3s. 6JU. Flour, £8 10s. Oats. Algerian feeding. 2s. 4d.. 2d. 5d.; niilliiif<, 2s. Bd. Sparrowbille, 3a. Id., 3s. 2d.i Giants 3s. 2d.. 3s. 3d.: Now Zealand A Cartons, 3s. 2d. Barley, Cape malting. 3s. 3d., 3s. 6d. Jlaizc. 4s. 3d. Bran and polhrd, £4. Potatoes, Tasmania",?, £4. Onions, £6 10s. Butter, selected 1035.; flMDWlairji, 965., 98s. Cheese, 53d„. fd. Itacou, 85d., 9d. Adelaide, December 4. Wheat. 3s. 7d. Flour, £7 155., £8. Bom and pollard.