BRITISH TRADE.

Hokitika Guardian, 29 May 1924, Page 4

BRITISH TRADE.

EOKTNI (ill'll.Y IUiYIEW

TDK STOCK EXCHANGE. LONDON, May -21 The Stork Exchange continues to pur ate a somewhat monotonous course, with a noticeable absence ol speculative business except in oil shares, wherein there lias been a revival of activity. Gilt-edged stocks maintain tiit.ii- firmness despite the competition of :tew issues, and evidently there is plenty of money available for investment in them. Proof ol this is found in tiie full subscription of life OimiiK tiwcallli ten millions loan, despite tlie fact that some people thought iis pi ice rather high. Apparently foreign invo-tai'- now are buying British giltedgods Hiving to the instability of European exchange-. The inarkcl lor foreign (iuvi niincnt bonds has been Ujis'.o by tlies'. 1 violent exchange littctnalion-, lan this did not prevent the mpiii subscript 'oil of the CzeefioSli cabin loan cl C 1 AoO.OiK! at S per (•'•lit. This was issued at Wit. Such a high-yielding senility proved very

all nu-live, and wa, over suh-eribui v. it •!::i ro In nr. The opening li’ts oi other new issues, holh home and I'oieigu, of the investment type, have prove! alm.;«i equally attractive, ami tlce .support given them is regarded a, indicative of the view that too Sloth does not held '.'JUi h Imp • of f.u. early trade revival.

T f j I'EXE!!.\I, TIJA DU OUTLOOK In i ontldv trade icvicw, tin.

"Kc > Mist" says there is sonic gr.iv .! i:■ i.inking there has been, since March, some slackening in aeli- \ ity, not so inuo't with regard to the work in haml, hut for future orders. This slight tilled taiuty follow a the pretedciif of L121!,._ when business swung along with vigour till mid-April, nut! llieii experienced a drill hack till the end of .Inly. The slightly lv-s assured tone in Lritaiu is pc; Imps a reliectien of conditions over-’as. lieports fri in the I'nited .States arc markciiiy !e-s buoyant, lielgiunt is expeii'.’iienig quite a definite falling in mtivily. and in :l •):■ generally conditions arc sonic.’.'! .. in it state of get: ’rtii sus-pen-c.

Tic. TOOL POSITION*. nisctissing • wool position, a leading importer -a,, th • restricted Continental demand - dm 'ilmest entirely li the financial and fluctuating exchanges. L X • that tin’s lempoiury lightness i.::t r he relieved in a few weeks, and that the i midi sit),plies will easilv he absorbed. l’.asiness generally is showing steady, though somewhat patchy, improvement. rnemploymant figures in Yorkshire have laden to a mere satisfactory lev-.-l, and the position i, tints signilieanily better. The export of cloth shows a considerable increase on last year's figures. It i, almost certain Japan will require a largely increased

<{n:iii 1 ity (if wool, and tlir> quietness c! the I’nited Staics markets citintef persist, much longer. 'lhe Contine'it::' position gives hope of sonic improvcmciil, liotli politically and financially, and it is significant that stocks both of wool and tops in Continental tonties :ro considcrahly below norma;. The ;;trade is still hampered i»y tlillh ..: ics in the export section, and licnty i lion, which increases costs of pr. ! ii.io. hut business is gradually si,o,vine signs of returning strength. -Manulacturcrs now are showing the new reason*., »nr: tg goods under exceptionally difficult conditions. The neec-sary and quite inadequate advance i'i prices demanded for worsteds is checking business. The fact is that the* ! ighet prices for raw material are extremely difficult to pass on to the distributor. APPLES.

We are now halfway -through the Australian and Xew Zealand apple season, and it is satisfactory to report an improvement in the markets and in the general quality of the fruit. There is now a good trade in .ill Tfriti«h markets for sound clean apples, and though the Orman demand is declining,'as it usually does towards the end of May, business in other Continental markets, notably Holland and Scandinavia, continues satisfactory, and this accounts largely for the excellent prices realised at Hull, where large quantities of fruit are being purchased for the Continent, the demand being especially good for wellcoloured showy fruit. Bitter pit- Is

now less prevalent than in earlier shipments, and there has been no brown heart. The only trouble is the blackspotted Tasmanians, many cases of which have been selling as low as 7s, and their presence in the markets has undoubtedly affected the good name of Australian apples. The grading of those Tasmanians is often unsatisfactory. In many instances there has been little or no appreciable difference between cases marked “standard” and thove marked “blemished.” At one sale this,week apples marked “bloinishel” actually realised sixpence a case more than fruit from the same orchard marked “standard.” There are also complaints of the smallness of some Tasmanians, which are. much below the size marked on the cases. GOOD YEAH KOR DISTILLERS.

Despite the maintenance of the duty on spirits at 72s Gd per gallon, and the strenuous efforts of the Prohibition Party, who continue an active campaign on tile platform and in the Press, the whisky trade keeps up surprisingly well. At it meeting of one of the biggest distilling firms, the chairman, in announcing a dividend of .‘Pi per cent, stated that last year had been in every respect the best the company had ever experienced, and sales of tlieir brands, both at Home and for export, showed an increase exceeding two millions sterling compared with the previous year.