COMMERCIAL.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1796, 8 May 1874, Page 2

COMMERCIAL.

CHBiSTCHtracH.—-The Lyttelton Times of Saturday last reports ;— , Generally the grain trade has »-ot been very lively daring the past week. Wheat is 4s 7d to 4s Od. There is afair trade doing, but there are not many orttßide orders on hand. We hear of a line changing second hands at 4s 1 Id. For oats there in a fair demand at 4s 4d to 4s sd, the latter price for prime milling samples. A good deal of barley ia offering, and first-class malting samples are in request at 5s 3d. Inferior and discolored samples— a good deal of the latter being in the market— fetch, for horse feed, from ,4s to 4s bU Rye grass seed is not quite so firm, 4s b«iug its quotation. For flour, price*' remain the same as last week, viz :— L.12, sacks ; Ll2 10s. in,looib bags ; Ll3, for 501 b bags, with 10a per ton extra to.b. in Lyttelton. Bran, L 6 5s per ton; oatmeal L 25 per ton. The .price of butter gtall-keepsup, though itis being imported to ■ome extent /from Melbourne to the West Coast'; farmers still ask lldinChristchuroh. There is no improvement in cheese, which is worth 5Jd tojd,' Of.^baebn, there is still none inTihe market ; hams fetch ' is. For potatoes -60e per ton; in Christchurch, is the top price. About 1000 tons hare already

been bought at and under the above price, but deliveries have only ju9t commenced. At the yards, on Wednesday, there wa» a considerable entry of sheep, many of which were of excellent quality. The trade operated with great apathy, and, in fact, nearly the whole of the good sheep were taken up by an enterprising grazier at prices up to 14s 6d which will leave a good margin for profit, if the sheep are well kept for a month o» two longer. Our quotation for mutton is 2£d per lb, on the average. Store sheep are in easy btock demand, and more particularly poor and old merino ewes, which are almost unsaleable. ;'■ , a small number of cattle were yarded, an . the fat ones Bold for an average of 20s per lOOlbs. Store, cattle, were exceedingly dull, an<l some lots were withdrawn. We have to notice the sale of a station in this province, which was effected by auction in Dunedin last week. It is that of the Ben Ohou run, at L»ke Ohou, comprising 81,000 acres, which with 34,000 sheep, sold for L 20.000