Commercial Intelligece.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 14, Issue 731, 1 November 1869, Page 2

Commercial Intelligece.

NAPIER. Times Office, Monday morning. Trade during the month just passed has been excessively dull; but with the advent of the wool season, and—may we hope?—the opening up of a payable gold-field on the borders of, if not within, the Province during the summer, we may confidently look forward to a healtliier state of affairs. The arrival of the barque It. T. Turnbull, now 120 days out from London, is anxiously looked for, as she has on hoard a large cargo of general merchandise, including many articles of which the market is running short. She comes consigned to Messrs. Watt Brothers, and will be the first wool ship of the season. As mentioned by us on Thursday, shearing has commenced on several of the stations in the Province, some of this season's clip having alreadybeen conveyed to town. We note the following exports during the past month: —74 head of cattle; 2,717 sheep; lhorse; and li casks preserved meat. The flax industry is beginning to attract some attention in this Province, and we trust the day is not far distant when the exportation of this commodity will be no uncommon occurrence. As the Customs returns for October will not be made up until this afternoon, we are unable to publish the amount in this issue. OTAGO. The Otago Daily Times, 22nd October, reports as follows: — The markets are without any briskness, but a moderately good enquiry fur general merchandise is maintained, and second houses have experienced an improved up-country demand. In teas and sugars transactions have been light; buyers waiting for the auction sales likely to take place within a few days. Sales of spirits, both in case and bulk, are reported at prices showing no essential variation from last quotations. Bulk beers have been quitted to some extent; a parcel of Bass' (new shipment), equal to 30 hhds, at a price not given, and about 50 hhus, various brands of this season's shipments, at rates also withheld; 10 o.p. rums have been placed at 4/, and a parcel of ales in glass (Devenish) at 11/, duty paid. A rather better enquiry has been experienced for dried fruits, several parcels of currants and raisins moving at prices ranging, according to quality, from /3f to /-A. Oilmen's stores quitted in an entire invoice show as nearly as possi ble last rates. Liverpool salt has beeri [placed' a'* Sl'/G, and rock salt at 100/. The produce market has dropped into comparative quietness. The millers make quotations for fine flour £ls for current parcels, but no business reported at these rates, though transactions among outside holders at rather lower fhjures. Oats are worth 4/6, with a demand only for local requirements, uood milling wueats are quoted at 6/ to b/3. CANTERBURY. The Lyttelton Times, 23rd October, reports as follows: — Wheat is dealt in principally for export, at 5/ to 6/3. Several parcels of flour have been shipped to West Coast, and the millers' quotations range

from £l4 10/ to £ls. Oats are becoming scarce, but values have uot advanced beyond 4/ to 4/3.| Barley is wanted, aud the small parcels coming forward meet with a ready sale at 6/i to 6/9. Cheese finds ready purchasers at /9 to /9fr, but prime samples are scarce. Butter has slightly receded, and/U to /IH is now the outside price. Potatoes are working off slowly at from £3 5/ to £3 10/. Hams and bacon are enquired for at late rates. Pat sheep of good quality are still eagerly sought after, whilst those of inferior and medium quahtv command little more than store prices. On Wednesday a small lot of shorn half-breds brouglit from 11/9 to 11/'J, or about /2£ per pound. This is no criterion of what the value of shorn wethers will he a week or two hence, as at present the scarcity of really good sheep induces an eager competition for the few that are offered. In cattle, quotations remain tho same. In horses there is little business doing.

WELLINGTON. The Wellington Independent, October 23, has the following:— We can report no improvement in trade during the past week; few private sales to any extent can be effected, and the prices realised at auction are beyond precedent low in the extreme. October is usually, from some unexplained cause, our dullest month, but we can hardly recall a time when every department of business has been as stagnant as it appears to be now. The anticipated rise in flour and grain has received a check, and prices have fallen to their old quotations. Oats have also declined in value owing to the arrival of several cargoes from the South, and as the pasture is looking well, the consumption of this grain will be much lessened, so that we do not think any material alteration in the value will result. The present quotation for flour is £ls 10/ per ton, and for oats 4/3 to 4/6 per bushel. Sugars are a trifle lower: Melbourne Company's No. 1O is now quoted afc £SO per ton duty paid ; two cargoes of sugar from the Mauritius, per Frederick and Exouia, have recently arrived at Dunedin, and as portions of their cargo will doubtless find their way to this market, we may look for a further decline.