TRADE AND FINANCE

Evening Star, Issue 19801, 27 February 1928, Page 5

TRADE AND FINANCE

FORTNIGHTLY REVIEW APPLE PROSPECTS BAD LOWER PRICES EXPECTED WITTER MARKET IMPROVING. Press Association —By Telegraph—Copyright LONDON, February 26. (Received February 27, at 1.3 U a.m.) The Stock Exchange had an exhilarating week, the outstanding feature being, as one financial writer puts it, that dealings have been most active in what may be described as extremes of the market. High-class investment stocks have met with a revival of interest, duo in a largo measure to the improved monetary conditions following on general appreciation of the pounci sterling and the strengthening of the Bank of England reserve. At tho other end ol the scale oil shares, which had fallen to very low prices, have attracted much speculation, partly owing to rumors of the possibility of tho termination of the war in connection with oil purchases in Russia. In industrials tho principal feature has been the spectacular jump in Courtaulcls, but there has also been much activity in oilier industrials, notably gramophones, shares in all companies producing these machines being bought eagerly at advancing prices. On the other band, all rubber shares arc under a cloud owing to the slump in the price of that commodity, which has brought about a selling pressure which was too much for the market, and forced prices down all round. THE APPLE MARKET. Notwithstanding ti*3 great decrease in tho export of apples from the United Stales and Canada, which up to date are only slightly more than half ot the previous season’s total, the market for this fruit continues disappointing, and prices arc far lower than might have been expected. Oregon New tow ns are only fetching 10s to 15s a box, consequently traders are iar Irom optimistic regarding the prices likely to bo obtained for Australian and Now Zealand apples, tho first arrivals of which are due hero the last week ni March, especially as according to the Empire Marketing Board’s estimates, the supplies of apples and pears from Australia and New Zealand are likely to exceed 3,500,000 boxes, and may possibly pass the 1926 record of 3.83U,000. BUTTER PROSPECTS. The butter market at last is beginning to show signs of improvement, and the news cabled from New Zealand that exports thence lor the rest of the season, will probably show a shrinkage of from 12 to 15 per cent, lias bad a hardening effort, thus prices in the near future seem more likely’ to advance than decline. With reference to tho article cabled on February 6 about the effects ot the prohibition of preservatives, tho High Commissioner (Sir James Parr) in a loim letter to the newspaper, ‘ Iho Grocer,’ points out that all New Zealand factories aro able to turn out a product without preservatives, which still possesses the well-known keeping properties that always have been associated with tho dominion’s butter. THE GENERAL OUTLOOK.

Tho ‘Economist’s’ monthly review again takes a favorable view of the outlook. The writer says: “The state of trade has slowly improved since the New Year. Those industries which arc specially subject to seasonal influences, such as the building trade, have been considerably affected by the bad weather and this has prevented anything more than a modest improvement hi the unemployment figures, but despite this the total figures arc moving in the right direction. In tho exporting industries the effect of the monetary stability is slowly Idling in our favor, putting us on more level terms of competition, but the headway is not very rapid and reports from overseas countries do not suggest a very rapid expansion of trade. A hopeful factor is tho more optimistic outlook in certain depressed trades. In iron and steel foreign cempctitiou is lessening in intensity as wages and prices abroad conform to tho new monetary equilibrium. At tho present moment, too, the threat of labor trouble in Germany (in itself an indirect consequence of tho readjustment process) is casing the situation for the British steel makers. The coal output has increased, but the prices and the demand arc still unsatisfactory. Cotton apparently is slightly better, though in some quarters there is an uncertainty arising from tho movement to lengthen hours and to reduce wages, which is regarded as bad for immediate trade.”