BRITISH TRADE.

Hokitika Guardian, 20 January 1926, Page 4

BRITISH TRADE.

I : CRT NIGHTLY REVIEW. BCTTKR I*RICKS IMPROVK. ! Australia & N.Z. Cablo Association.] j l-O.VPOX. Jan. 10. The first fortnight of the Xew Year lia.s toon a di'.ll period on the Stock Kxchungo. and business all round has been on a small scale. This largely is due to a plethora of new issues "hicii diverted attention from existing securities, and to tears that a rise in the Bank rate might be necessary, following the increase in New York. This fen r has proved tin loti tided, for the present at any rate, and the markets closed steadily, especially for g i 1 1—edged s, the noteworthy feature being that colonials were well maintained, despite the poor response to the Queensland and South Australian loans. mSE IX BUTTER. The hatter market is at lost showing some signs of activity, and trade last week was fairly brisk at pri from six to eight shillings above the Previous level. Importers are hoping that the improvement will bo maim tained kml shippers apparently have firm ideas, for a considerable quantity of recent arrivals from Australia and Xew Zealand are being held waiting their instructions. It is reported that the Australian and Xew Zealand Control Boards- are reducing shipments, and d this is the case the market should harden, especially if estimates that Xew Zealand’s arrivals will show a considerable shortage compared with nro realised.

A TSTRA 1 .TAX WINES. Optimistic reports cabled from time o time regarding an improvement in ho Australian wine trade are fidlv borne out by the official figures "•Inch show that both imports and consumption are largely in excess of previous years. The total imports of AustralmM wines in 1925 amounted to , ol.o° o gallons compared with 82-1 - 0(b) in 1924 and 706.000 in 192.3 The consumption of Australian wines in the t nited Kingdom was 782,000 gallons, compared with 611,000 in aml G2B -°OO in 1928. This increase m consumption by 171,000 gallons is particularly noteworthy, as the consumption of wine from other British possess, ~, in ]m waR |f . ss tlmn . n >clll -"‘ 215.000 gallons, amdnst 220.000. ~

BJ(i SUPPLY OF EGOS. I he Australian egg season is closing somewhat unfortunately, the best pric» obtainable for the Sophocles parcel he >ng only about fifteen shillings per 120. Hie slump of Australian eggs is largely due to a general fall i u prices o'vmg to heavy supplies from'all sources. but it is accentuated by the presence on tlie market of several unsatisfactory parcels which were held up j„ Australia during the shipping strike. These are practically unsalenbe, and several lots which bad been sold have reen returned by purchasers. The result is that Australian eggs, for ft. moment, have got a very bad name. WOOL TRADE. The wool trade does not expect the first series of sales opening on Tuesday, to show any great divergence in values from the last of the AD2S. The Bradford correspondent of the

“Economist” points out that if Continental buyers are aide to operate at all freely there should lie no difficulty in maintaining values, but there is some room for doubt as to whether these countries will be able to give their usual support. So long as there is any possibility of lower values, users will simply buy from hand to mouth, but there is reason to believe that firmness in wool would bring on: a considerable amount of latent business in semi and fully-manufactured goods. Another expert writes: “One reson why I don’t expect any greaf change is that the figures published by Dalgetys show that the amount of Australian wool on tho way to Europe is quite adequate. No complaintarc now heard in consuming centres about the smallness of stocks. This points to no higher prices being paid, while the probability of niurh decline in merinoes is precluded by tbo fact that merino tops arc leaving the combers as fast as they are being produced. This indicates a large consumption in the West Hiding, oml wo should say that merino wool is now being shipped on a larger scale than for the past two years.”

A notable feature of the trado returns for 1926 is the indication they afford of the approach to normal transactions with Russia in wool produced in that country. In 1921 the quantity of wool exported to England from Russia was only 787.096 pounds, but last year the quantity received from this source '.rose to 7.210,000 pounds. This represent •• something in the region of pre-war normal volume, if trade done in the last two pre-war years be accepted as a reasonable criterion.