COMMERCIAL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4931, 11 January 1877, Page 7

COMMERCIAL.

The Customs duties received at this port for the four weeks ending January 7, were as follows: £ s. d. £ s. d. Spirits . .. 3011 6■ 4 Goods by wgt.' 1381 5 5 : Cigars .. 368 18 9 Ad valorem .. 3230 5 0 Tobacco .. 709 12 0 Other duties.. 251 X 3 , Wine .. 391 10 9 Light dues. Ale ' i.. 576 17 9 shipping, &c. 301 6 3 ■Tea ..562 4 9 Coffee .. 131 14 3 Sugar ..1183 19 9 Total £12,100 2 3 ; Although the Christmas holidays may have interfered to some extent with our trade; diming the past month; there has been little cause for complaint, as business in most departments has been as brisk as could be deaired;;ahd we think that the new year has been ushered in under circumstances sufficiently favorable to afford grounds for anticipating that at its termination we shall have no cause for regret;. Although stocks may be heavy and consequently keep prices do\Vn to a moderate scale of profit,.we shall be the better able to compete in the supply of the country and outposts with our Australian neighbors who, some few yeais ago, had the .field entirely to themselves. -There have been complaints of scarcity. of money in some quarters, but as a rule payments are well met, and an absence of over-speculation would prove that our' trade is on a tolerably firm basis. There is little fluctuation in value, and it is a noticeable .fact tbat bur market seldom responds immediately to either a rise or a fall in the adjacent bolonies, thus proving that our stocks are in most cases sufficiently balanced for the requirements of our current wants. Kartell's and Henneasy’s brandies,' kerosene, sugar, and salt have shown an t advance,, though not to tbe extent warranted by outside indi- i cations, while flour, , owing to the receipt of . several ■ shipments and the anticipations of a good harvest, has fallen in value. With these exceptions, quotations remain the same as last month. ; Our arrivals during, the month have been —From London: the Avalanche, December 8, with cargo and passengers; and Ocean Mail, December 13,.with cargo. The Young Dick, from-Hobarton, with 170 tons flour, timber, bark, &c. ; the Annie Hill, with 112 tons flour; the Kate Brain, with 200 tons; and the Lillie Hawkins, with 110 tons flour, from.Adelaide-ir the latter being bound for Canterbury; and Suffolk, 3?1 tons, with general cargo, from Melbourne;: ■ e :The AYaimea, 854 tons, left for Lyttelton on December 13; the Zealandia, 1116 ' tons, sailed , for London on December. 1 14, with a cargo of .wool, &c., valued at £97,901; and the Waikato bn the 20th, with cargo valued at £68,300. The cargo of the Zealandia consisted of 4767 bales wool, 189 bales, skins, 510 casks • and cases tallow,lloo pkgs spelter, 350 cases preserved meat, 11 pkgs sundries. The Waikato's cargo consisted of 4157 bales wool, 42 bales skins,’loo casks and cases tallow, 82 pkgs leather, 470 bags antimony ore. 260 cases prcseVved meat, 2b pkgs sundries. ■ The vessels at the wharf are fast tilling upi, and are nearly full ships. The St. Leonards is to sail bn'the 13th, the Jessie Headman on the 15th, and the Howrah on the 20th current. ’ Tbe following vessels a.e loading d»t London or have sailed: —Himalaya, 1008 tons, sailed October 7 : Leicester, 1300 tons, sailed October 22 : Hurunui, at Plymouth. October 6: the Adamant, 815 tons, Eakaia, and Pleione loading. . Rates of freight to London,—-Grease wool, Jd per lb;; washed do, gd per lb.; tallow, in cases, 60s; in casks, 70s: and hides, 55s per tbn. , ; Bank rates of discount and exchange are as follow; —Discount on local bills, under 95 days, 7 per cent.; do, 125 days, 8 per cent.; do, over 125 days, 9 per cent. Exchange on London—Buying rate: at 190 days, 1J per cent, discount; do 60 days, f per cent, do;; do 30 days, } per cent, do,; at sight, par. Selling rate: at 90 days, i per cent, premium;.do 60 days, | per cerih do ; do' 30 days, 1J per cent, do'; on demand, 1| per cent. do. Interest on deposits for 3 months, 44 per cent.; do 6 months, 5 per cent.; do 12 months. 5j per cent. Ale and Porter, duty paid (bulk. Is per gallon ; bot-« tied, Is 3d).—Bottled ale and porter have been in fair demand during the past month, but owing to the large stocks on hand, prices show no improvement, and best brands of ales and stouts cannot be quoted higher than 10s 6d to 10s 9d per doz. for bottled ales, and 11s to 11s 6d for bottled stouts. Stocks are now becoming more manageable, and if importations should be on a more moderate scale, better rates may be looked for. Pints of both ales and stouts are in short supply, and wanted; English bulk ale is low in stock; demand limited; quoted at £3 10s to £9 perhhd. ,■ ■■**' Bags and Woolpacks (duty,-10 per cent.)—The demand for carnsacks is' unimportant, and sales are difficult at 9s 9d'to 10s per doz. ; stocks light. Woolpacks duU, at 3s 6d tor 101 b. packs, as the season is now over. ■ ' Candles (duty. Id per lb.)—Quotations for foreign make of sperm candles are firm at 10Jd, although at auction in the early part of the month a line of Gouda sperm was sold at lOd. f;: Price’s make is worth 104 d per lb., and as stocks are not excessive, there is every indication that quotations are likely to improve. Cement (duty, Is per barrel). —This article is low in stock, and as tbe requirements of the several contracts now in progress must necessarily absorb a large quantity, holders have advanced their rates, and are now asking 20s per barrel for best brands. Coffee (duty, 3d per lb.) —Fair stocks at la 3d per lb. in bond, with the customary business doing. Confectionery (duty, 2d' per , lb.)-OTo alteration from last month’s rates. AVbtherspoon s and Keiller’s makes are selling at lOd to lOjd per lb. Flour (duty, 20s per ton).—The arrival of three cargoes from Adelaide and 175 tons from Hobarton served to depress the price of Adelaide flour, and at an auction sale of -the cargo of the Kate Brain the highest rate obtainable for Dunn’s brand in trade lots was £l6los to £l7 per ton, the bulk having been knocked down in lots of 5 to 10 tons, at £16155. The Annie Hill took her cargo South, and the Lillie Hawkins to Auckland, in hopes of a more favorable market, AVe understand that further sales have been made privately at £l6 10s per ton. Fruits (duty. Id per lb.)—Dried fruits are somewhat;easior.,and currants are now quoted at 43d to 5d per lb.; Eleine raisins, 6d: muscatels. Is to Is 2d: and sultanas, 7Jd to 8d per lb., with active demand, stocks being ample for current wants. Figs, in small boxes, are worth 8d to Sdld per lb.; dried apples, 7|d per lb. Hops (duty, 3d per lb).—English hops aro wanted, there being none in first hands. Holders aro asking 3s per lb for a shipment to arrive, if in good condition. Malt (duty. Is 6d per bushel).—-There is no English malt in stobk.' 1 ’ Metals (duty,TO per cent). —The demand for galvanised iron has continued good during the past month, and from the large amount of buildings going up in all parts of the city it is not improbable that present stocks may fall to meet the requirements of the building trade. Best brands of 26-gauge move off readily • at £32 to £33 10s per ton, the prejudice running in favor,of Gospel Oak and Morewood’smake. t Other brands are little enquired for, but in the present state of tbe market ~would sell readily at a trifling reduction on these rates. 24 gauge is scarce and wanted. . Fencing wire. is dull, but will no doubt be

in better demand now that the wool clip is in. and the farmers can turn their attention to fencing. Quotation Hyland’s make. Nos 6,7, and S, £lB per ton: the higher numbers are not wanted. Oils (duty, 6d per gallon).—Kerosene is firm at3s6d per gallon, duty paid, with very low stocks. The Josephine and 'William Cobb bring only 4300 cases, and as the Australian markets are high, there is no reason to expect that quotations will be any lower. We hear that a firm in Melbourne placed 15,000 cases at 2s (id to 2s 9d per gallon, in bond, netting thereby a profit of £7OOO. Paint oils continue in good demand. at 4s to 4s 4d per gallon for raw and boiled linseed, in drums; oil in bulk rules 3d to 4d per gallon lower ; Colza oil in moderate demand at 5s 6d ; Castor, 4s 6d per gallon. Oilmen’s stores (duty, 10 per cent).—A fair trade has been done in all articles coming under this head, at prices which, owing to abundant stocks, afford only a small margin of profit. - Rice (duty, per lb).—Fine-dressed Patna is worth £23 to £2B per ton, according to quality and condition. Salt (free).—This article is in the hands of one firm only, who qxiote 100 s to 110 s for fine, and 90s to 100 s per ton for coarse. Spirits (duty, I2s per gallon).—Brandies continue firm at the advance noted last month, although the rise has not been so great as London quotations would warrant.' Hennessy’s and Martell’s bulk brandy cannot obtain higher than 9s per gallon for quarters, and 34s to 35s per case, although at these figures the brandies could not be laid down from Home. Until stocks diminish we cannot anticipate better prices, as holders being satisfied with increased profit, are anxious to realise their stocks. Several outside brands are now more readily quitted, and sales of Bisquit Dubouche, Vinegrowers’ Company’s, Champagne Vinevard Proprietors, and other brands, have been made in quarters formerly, inadmissible. Rum, gin, and whisky, are unaltered in value from last month, and have been exceedingly dull of sale. Sugar (duty, Id per lb.).—Sugars are in sufficient stock to meet current wants, and vary but little from last month's x*ates. We quote Sydney Company’s first white, £45 to £45 10s per ton ; IC, £44 to £44 10s per ton ; C, £4l to £4l 10s; and Y, £37 10s to £3B per ton. We understand that the Sugar Company have further advanced their prices 40s per ton in Sydney, but have not applied the advance to the New Zealand trade. Crushed loaf sugar is in moderate demand, and quoted at,£ss to £57 per ton, but at auction £SO has'been accepted. Tea .(duty. Is per lb.)—Usual trade doing. Tobacco (duty, 2s 6d per lb.)—Prices of the heat brands of tobacco remain firm and unaltered from last month, with a fair ‘business doing. Cigars (duty, 5s per lb.) —The same remark applies to cigars,' which are worth for Havannah-shaped Manilla's, 120 s to 130 s per 1000 d.p,; Swiss, 34s to 37s per 1000 in bond. Wine (duty, 4s per gallon).—Fair amount of business done during the month in the lighter sorts of wine. Ports and sherries dull. COLONIAL PRODUCE. Butter.—Keg butter meets with little or no inquiry, except for home consumption, and is worth 9d to 10d per lb. for prime samples. Cheese.—Market fully supplied with Canterbury make, at 8d to 9d per lb. Bacon and Hams.—ln moderate supply, and fair amount of business doing at 84d to 9d per lb for Canterbury Company’s cure. Ten cases of this cure were disposed of under the hammer by Mr. R. J. Duncan on the 4th inst. at this figure, but holders are asking lOd. Flour.—Canterbury and Oaraaru flour, owing to the importation of large stocks of Adelaide, nave given, way in value, and cannot be quoted higher than £ls to £ls 10s for sacks and half-sacks. Stocks are moderate, but the Southern millers show an inclination to push sales, as in a short time the new flour will be in the market, and stocks down South are evidently larger than was supposed. Grain.—Oats remain stationary at 3s 3d to 3s 6d per bushel for good milling ser£s. Ordinary feed oats vary from 2s 8d to 3s, according to sample. There is little doing in other grains. Potatoes.—Sales of. Auckland grown at 80s per ton. Market well supplied. • Timber.—Full stocks of sawn timber, which is in, active demand. Cargoes of pine boards and scantling are worth from Ips to Ur per 100 ft. ;totara, 16s 6d to 16s; kauri, 13sto 14s peclOOft.