PRICES EASIER

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 932, 27 March 1930, Page 10

PRICES EASIER

N.Z. STOCK MARKETS EXPORT VALUES DECLINE (Reviewed by R.W.C.) An easier tone in the overseas market for frozen meat has been followed by an all-round decline in fat stock prices throughout the Dominion. Exporters operating throughout the Auckland Province announced lower schedule rates for fat stock on the hooks at Westfield works on Mondaylast. Best lamb is now worth wether and maiden ewe mutton, up to 5Jd a lb; ewe mutton to 3Jd. East week’s schedule price qf up to 35s a hundred for ox beef has been withdrawn, exporters are not even keen buyers on lower levels at the moment. The overseas outlook is clouded with a considerable amount of uncertainty at the moment and exporters are not prepared to take too many risks and, as far as beef is concerned, prefer to operate only when they are filling overseas contracts. As far as the Auckland Province is concerned at the moment it seems that graziers in all parts are holding a comparatively big number of fat cattle, but, for the most part, these are being held in the hope of an improvement in the market as the season advances.

Market at Westfield At Westfield yesterday the fat cattle offering was one of the smallest this season: as a result prices held at late rates, despite the fact that buyers for the bigger butchering firms showed little interest, and exporters did not bid at all. Apart from one line of rather well-finished medium-framed

cattle from Waikato, near-Auckland graziers contributed the biggest part of the offering. Best ox sold up to 37s a hundred; best cow to 33s a hundred. There was little demand for boner .and potter cows. In the calf pens there was a smaller yarding, and prices for medium-weight vealers showed a slight improvement. Big-framed heifers in the calf pens made up to £§ 17s 6d; choice runners made to £5 4s; heavy vealers, from £3 5s to £4 ss; medium, £2 2s to £3 Is; small, 22s to 38s; fresh-dropped, from 7s.

The sheep offering was slightly under an average yarding, but there was a bigger percentage of exceptionally well-finished wethers forward; these met with a keen sale at up to 30s; medium-weight wethers made from 23s 6d to 265; heavy prime ewes, to 235; medium, 37s 6d to 19s 6d. Lambs sold around the export parity of up to 7£d for best quality on the hooks at Westfield.

Pigs met with a free sale mostly at late rates, porkers were a little easier. Baconers made from 6td to 7 id; porkers, to Bd. Large stores made to 465; medium, 26s to 335; good healthy weaners, 14s to 19s.

Stortford Lodge Market A good yarding of beef caAie forward to the Stortford Lodge (Hastings) sale yesterday. Prices were slightly easier for all classes of beef. A fair yarding of sheep also met with decidedly easier prices compared with recent sales.

Fat bullocks, light, made £lO to £l2 12s 6d; heavy, £l3 to £l4 8s 6d; fat cows, £7 to £9 15s; fat heifers, £9 to £9 17s 6d; prime steers, £9 7s 6d to £ll 2s 6<l; vealers, to £3 7s 6(1; fat wethers, 22s to 255; fat ewes, 15s to 19s; fat lambs, 17s to 19s; two-tooth wethers, up to 20s; F. and F. wethers, up to 225; 2, 4 and 6-tooth ewes, 19s to 25s 3d; 5-year s.m. ewes, 12s 6d to 16s 9d; low condition, late shorn ewes, 6s 3d.

Johnsonviile Sale A -large yarding of all classes of stock came forward at Johnsonviile yesterday. The cattle comprised mostly bullocks, the quality of which was exceptionally good. The market, as compared with late rates, was decidedly easier, heavy bullocks showing a decline of 15s to 20s a head. The sheep yarded were of average quality and a good sale resulted at prices showing a decline on last week’s rates of Is for wethers and Is 6d for ewes. Lambs were yarded in larger numbers than of late, and met with a keen demand at prices above export parity.

Prices were:—Extra heavy bullocks, £ls to £ls 17s Od; heavy bullocks, £ls to £ls 10s: bullocks. £l3 30s to £l4 15s; vealers, £2 to £4 4s; heavy wethers, 25s 3d to 28s; wethers, 24s to 24s Cd; ewes, 14s 9d to 16s Gd: lambs, 35s 6d to 23s 3d. Market Easier at Addington

With tho exception of that for store lambs, the yardings in all the major sections of the weekly metropolitan market at Addington yesterday were large ones. Htore sheep and store lambs, which have reached a very low level of prices during the past fortnight, sold at prices equal to late rates, but store sheep especially sold irregularly, and there seemed a general lack of confidence in the present basis of values. Fat cattle values fell for all classes by up to £.l a head over a very patchy-sale. Fat sheep also eased in price by up to Is a head. The market for fat lambs was a fair one; the average price a lb being from 7d to Sd. A yarding of 23,000 store sheep was drawn from all parts of the South Island and included several lines from The North Island. Plxtra good 2-tooth Romney ewes made 325; good, to 28s; good 4, 6 and 8-tooth ewes made to 25s 6cl.

Extra prime fat wethers made to 32s 7d; prime*, 26s to 28s; medium, 23s to 25s 9d: extra prime ewes made to 22s Id. A heavy yarding of mostly poor quality cattle met with an easier market- Best medium-weight prime beef made from 39s to 41s Gd a 1001 b; medium quality, from 32s 6cl to 36s Cd a 1001 b; heavy steer beef, from 32s 6d to 375; good cow beef. 29s to 335; secondary. 23s to 275; light and rough, down to 21s. Porkers averaged Sd to Sid a lb; baconers, 6id to 7d a lb. Values in the pig sections showed a general slight decline. FOREIGN EXCHANGES British Official Wireless RUGBY, Tuesday. The following rates on foreign exchanges are current today, compared with the cabled quotations on March am pai . Mar 25. Mar. 20 Par. Montreal, dol. .. 4.87 1-16 4.563 4-866 Xew York, dol. . . 4.86 31-32 4.86 11-32 4.866 Paris, fr 124.25 124.31 124.21 Brussels, belga .. 34.88 34.885 35.00 Geneva, fr. .. 25.135 25.125 25.22 Amsterdam, fl. .. 12.12 3-S 12.125 12.30 Rome, lire .- 92.97 -92.575 92.46 Berlin, r.m 20.385 20.385 20.43 Stockholm, kr. .. 13.10 18.905 18.159 Oslo, kr 18.17 18.17 18.159 Copenhagen, kr. . 15.16 18.165 18.159 Vienna, sch 34.575 34.525 34.58* Prague, kr 164 3-16 164 1-8 24.02 Helsingfors, mark 1935 1931-S 192.23 Madrid, pes 39.00 38.55 25.22 J Lisbon, escu 108.30 105.30 Athens, dr 375 375 375.00 Bukarest, lei. .. SIS 838 25.22! R. de Janeiro, mil. 5 25-32 5 23-32 Buen. Ayres, dol. 42 3-8 42 1-S 47.57 d Calcutta, rupee .. 27 13-16 17 13-16 lSd Shanghai, tael . . 235 225 Hong Kong, dol. .185 18 Yokohama, yen . 24 3-8 24 3-S 24.55 d Batavia, fi 12.12! 12.13 12.10

BLENDED BUTTER FRAUD BILL IN COMMONS WRAPPERS TO BE BRANDED Reed. 10.5 a.m. LONDON, Wed. In the House of Commons Mr. Oswald Lewis’s Blended Butter Bill was read a first time. The principal provision is the compulsory use of the word “blended” on the wrapper. Air. Lewis pointed out that last year 80,000 tons of butter were blended in Britain, of which 60,000 tons consisted of inferior butter from Poland, Latvia, Siberia, and other foreign countries, and 16,000 tons were of good quality from Australia and New Zealand. The addresses on the wrappers made people think they were buying local butter. Earlier in the day. the Conservative Parliamenlary Agricultural Committee received a deputation representing the Australian, New Zealand, Irish Free State and South African butter producers protesting against the fraudulent sale of blended butter from foreign countries. The meeting adopted a resolution urging the Minister of Agriculture to institute an inquiry under the Merchandise Marks Act. FRUIT AND PRODUCE WELLINGTON MARKET REPORT FROM BROKERS Laery and Co., Ltd.. Wellington report present values as follows: — Apples: Fancy Cox’s Orange, Ss to 9s; Jonathans, 5s 6d to 6s 6d: Delicious. 6s 6d to 7s Gd; cookers, 4s Gd to 5s 6d bushel. Pears; Choice, L.8.J., 8s to 10s; Coles, 7s to 8s; cookers, 4s to 5s bushel. Peaches: Choice, Golden Queen, 8s to 9s; Hobbs, 6s to 7s; others, 4s 6d to 5s 6d half case. Cape Gooseberries: Choice, 5s to 6s half case. Passion: Choice, 6s to 7s; others, 4s 6d to 5s Gd a box. Lemons: Choice, cured, 16s to 18s: others, 10s to 12s bushel. Quinces: Choice, 8s to 9s; others, 6s 6d to 7s 6d bushel. Grapes: Choice, hothouse, Is 2d to Is 4d: others, 8d to Is pound. Tomatoes: Choice, red, 4s to 4s 6d; coloured, 4s 6d to 5s half case. Cucumbers: Choice, 10s to 12s banana case; 3s Gd to 4s Gd half case. Kumeras: Choice, 6s 6d to 7s 6d; others, 5s Cd to 6s sugar bag. Celery: Choice, 5s to 6s dozen heads. Lettuce: Choice, Gs to 7s banana case. Spinnach: Choice, Gs Gd to 7s Gd banana case. Green Peas: Choice, 15s to 18s half sack. French Beans: Choice, 10s to 12s half sack. Black Leaf 40: In ten pound tins, 555; two pound tins, 14s 6d half pound bottles, 5s 3d each; loz. bottles, 14s Gd a dozen. DISTRICT STOCK SALES AUCTIONEERS’ REPORTS Stock' auctioneers report on sales held throughout the district during the past week as follow: Alfred Buekland and Sons, Ltd., report:—During the week we held cattle sales at AYestfield, ICaiwaka and Maungakaramea, a clearing sale at Waiuku and a horse sale at Pukekohe. Average yardings of cattle came lorward and changed hands at ruling prices. There was a large attendance at the clearing sale in the estate of the late O. 11. Selbv, and a good sale resulted. The pedigree Jersey cows sold up to 56gns; grade heifers, £ls los; bulls, to £ls 15s. Quotations at other sales were: Best dairy cows, £l2 to_ £ls; second grade cows, £9 to £ll 17s 6d; other dairy cows, £4 to in 8 17s 6d: ljest springing heifers, £lO 10s to £l3 15s; other springing, heifers, £6 to £10; empty young cows and heifers, £3 10s to £5 ss; store and boner cows, £ 2 to £5 10s; fat cows and heifers, £ 6 to £9 15s; 3ii to 4 \ -year-old steers, £9 to £lO 7s 6d; 2 to 3-year-old steers, £7 5s to £8 17s Gd: 3'earling to 2-year-old steers, £5 10s to £7 ss; weaner steer calves, £2 15s to £4 15s; weaner heifer calves, £ 2 to £4 10s; 18-month to 2-year-old dairy heifers, in calf, £5 5s to £lO 10s; cows with calves, £G 10s to £lO 10s; heavy bulls, £ 7 to £9 15s; sound young herd bulls, £4 10s to £9 10s; other bulls, £1 10s to £4 ss. Horses at Pukekohe did not meet with as ready a sale as at the previous month’s fixture. Dalgety and Company, Limited, report having held sales during the week at Helensville and Tuakau, as well as the Westfield store sale. At each of these fixtures stock came forward in large numbers, selling steadily in most cases at prices slightly easier than recent ruling rates. A fair spell of dry weather lias had a visible effect on recent values. However, competition is still good, and at all centres stock continues to change hands quite readily. At Helensville we offered the usual yarding of stock, the whole of the yarding being disposed of at satisfactory prices. At the AYestfield store sale we offered a big yarding of lambs, which sold at prices easier than has been the case recently, and a total clearance was effected. At Tuakau a very heavy yarding of all classes of cattle came forward to a good attendance of the public, practically the whole of the yarding being disposed of under the hammer. At this fixture we offered several annual drafs of bullocks from Tuakau vendors, a few of tho realisations being as follow: Fat and forward four-year-old Hereford bullocks, £8 14s to £9 12s; P.A. fat and forward bullocks, £ll 7.5; fat cows and heifers, £6 2s to £7 19s. Young cattle were not in good demand, and the passing among these was heavy. New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, report: Sales were held during the p: at Westfield, Pukekohe (cattle and pigs), Papakura, Waiuku, Whitford, Kaukapakapa and Waiwera. There is no improvement in the demand for beef, boner or store cattle, and all classes are dull of sale. In most cases vendors are meeting the market. We quote: Best dairy cows and heifers. £lO to £l4 10s ;othei*s. £ 7 to £9 15s; aged cows and inferior heifers, £4 to £ 0 3 ss; bulls, £3 to £9. according to weight and quality: store and boner cows. £3 to £G: weaner calves, heifers, £1 30s to £3 17s 6d: steers, £2 5s to £4 ss; heifers suitable for dairy purposes, £4 35s to £7 3 ss; yearling to 18-month steers, £4

15s to £ 6 12s 6d; two to 21-year steers. S £G 15s to £8 ss: three to 3 £-year steers. £8 7s 6d to £9 15s; steers in forward condition, £lO to £3 0 37s 6d. Wo harl a large yarding of pigs at j Pukekohe. There was a keen demand, with values easily on a par with West- I field rates.