FINANCE AND TRADE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 4973, 12 March 1895, Page 3

FINANCE AND TRADE.

[Specialty compiled tor lh« 'ft'nlrarapa Dally Times. 1 ] MONET. Notwithstanding low rates for deposits, the 'three Australian Banks doing business .in this Colony, find themselves handicapped with an accumulation. of idlo money—money for which there is just now no profitable out) et. This appears to bu tho experience of Banks all over the world, an d deposit rates liavo been reduced t( > a mere nominal snm, Of the Australasian group the rates appear to be j highest in New Zealand, which in dicatcs that a bettor outlet exists her ethan in the other Colonies, or that our Banks are not using the same am ount of prudence and care in loading money as the sister institutions across the water. It is rumoured that the rates of interest on deposit in New Zealand are to bo assimilated with those of Australia, nnd that the three foreign Banks will shortly reduce rates to 3 per ceni. for 12 months, and U pur cent, for six months' deposits. If this coni.es about it will force into the open a good deal of money now lying idle, which would, in n slight measure, tiiiu't to improvi) business. The Bank of England returns shows the position to be weaker than last week by £5,476,000, the reserve stamlhitj at £28,916,000, as against £34.8512,000, m\ £22,893,000 for the co rresponding date of last year. Tho following is a comparison of the ltiiding items of the Bank of England with the corresponding date of last year.

I Feb. '2l, Feb. 21, Move- 1 I 1593. incut. , i i: & £ ; i increase' Coin urn! Bullion .. 2!>,7;i0.000 7,754,000 Notes in I'irciihtitM !!•(!>,OOO 21,040,01)0 052.U00 decrease IV.Mic l)i'|io>its .. 0,n02,000 !l,3:&000 IM,OOO increase O»kr iK'i-osits .. 32,450,400 4,f01,(KW Gnvcriitn't Securities S,ftfji,ooQ 0 t i>oo decrease (Klict Si'iuritios .. 21,034,000 17,«W,000 0,2-W.IOO inereasc •,Verve .. .. 2 >,<02,400 2P,674,0M ItfijM i I'MWiiunonicservo per cent. pi-rc'.-m. per tent. M Lhbililics.. .. H 0 20 70*70 10 50 | Bank Discount Hutc 22 ! The open market rate for three i months bills has dropped dming the! week from H per cent to lj per cent, i COVERXJIEXT STOCKS. British 2| per cent consols (Gos-i aliens) uliow no variation for the week 'ohe quotation remaining at--10-J-f. There is very little movement in Colonial Government stocks. Of : the 4 'per cents New Zealand and . New tionth Wales have advanced as each, and Quecnslands have declined as. The following table ! shows the weekly movements Feb. Hell. Move2S. 7. incut. X. Zealand 1!)29 10!) 10<1| Uiscos. N. S. Wales l!)o3 110 111)} liiseos. i Victoriii, 1920 101 101 IS. Australia lH3(i 108 108 i Queensland, 1!)24 107 10(iJ Fall os. | AY. AustalialUD-t 112 112

lii {ho 3i per cent stocks there are only two movements to record, Victorians have declined 10s, mid South Australians have advanced as. The table of comparison is as follows Fob. Muli. Jlove 28. 7. incut. New Zealand 1910 101' 10U N.S. Wales 1924 103f 102* Victoria 11)23 98if 98} Fall 10s S. Australia 193U 1021 102:} liise 5s Queensland 1921 100 100 Tasmania 19101C3 100 * Ex-intercst mi EAT. The wheat market maintains the firm tone noted last week. The ! week's quotations ate • New Zealand long berried wheat, ex-warchouse, nominally, 25s !)d, firmer; South Australian, 26s 6d, market quiet; Victorian, 26s (id, firmer. The total quantity of wheat and flour atloat for the United Kingdom is 3,560,000 quarters as compared with 3,450,000 quarters a week ago ; the quantity atloat for the Continent amounts to 810,000 quarters as against 830,000 quarters last week. From the beginr ing of the year to the 23rd ult,, Victoria exported to New Zealand 990 bags of (lour; the total of the Victorian exports for the same period amounted to 266,951 bags wheat and 48,471 bags Hour. FROZEN MEAT. The market is still at freezing point, and the effect of the low prices on the stock of the Colony is well known to farmers who have cattle anil sheep to yard. DAIRY PRODUCE, The market for butter is demoralised, the full meaning of which is that the buyers have it all their own way. Choicest quality is selling at slightly over 91 per lb., finest quality at 9}d, and line quality at Bkl, .the average price being about !)d" The cheese sent Home by the Himalaya is of inferior quality, and is selling at 41d par lb. These quotations will send factory proprietors into a cold perspiration, and milk suppliers must expect to have prices cut down. The prospects of a better range of prices are not apparent, on the contrary the competition promises to be keener All the Australian Colonies are making special efforts to improve the quality and increase the quantity 1 of their butter shipments; Canada [ s doubling her efforts in j .his direction, and the Argentine bas entered the field with the ivowed object of competing with Australasia.TheDanesbavepromised ' lis a "cut-throat" competition and beating, so that taken all round butter has a gloomy future, WOOL. The second of of the scries of London wool sales opened on the 7th inst. According to expectations the sales opened at an advance of 5 per cent on the closing rates of last sales. The improvement is not expected to last, for as soon ns the top manufacturers are supplied the recoil will send the price clown lower than ever, The total quantity ayailablc including wool held over from last series amounts to 337,000 bales as compared with 300,000 bales at the last sales. Of the present lot 64,000 bales have been sent to the manufacturing districts direct, as against 44,000 bales at the preyious sales, NOTES. The battle between the shearers and pastoralists in Australia last season,cos,fcfclie latter £20,000. According tollnlhall the life of a locomotive is 15 years, during which time it will ran 240,000 miles, carry (.100,000 tons find one million passea-1 ge'W and earn -£60,000; its ordinary] now'® 800 horsepower and its first c.ost £2OOO. The following table showfl the valuo of the breadstuffa imported into the Uiiitecl Kingdom for the past 18 yearswheat flofif total £ £ £ 1891 16,310,200 9,068,000 1893 23,500,030 11,6a,000 36,006,000 1892 24,857,902 12,267,356 37,125,257 1891 29,'148,204 10,184,887 39,633,091 1890 23,684,616 9,074,290 32,668,906 1889 22,610,602 8,643,908 31,051,410 1888 21,995,974 9,530,746 31,526,720 1887 21,337,918 10,027,881 31,366,802 Mi' Hanna, late general manager of

the Bank of New Zoaland Assets Company haß been appointed Assistant Inspector of the Bank of New Zealand, with a roving commission throughout the colony. The Bank of New Zealand is evidently determined upon having a full complement of high salaried officials. With President, Directors, Acting-General Manager, Inspectors, and AssistantInspectors, tlio Bank will lie very much head and too little tail. A " roving commission " is rather an indefinable kind of billet. PtltCY Penlyn.