FARMING AND COMMERCIAL

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIII, Issue 20, 20 December 1932, Page 5

FARMING AND COMMERCIAL

DAIRY PRODUCE. markets firm slightly. Joseph Nathan and Co., Ltd., have received the following cabled advice, dated December 17, from London:—After brisk trading at 82s per cwt, the market for Now Zealand buttor closed at 84s per cwt. New Zealand cheese, white 50s per cwt, oolourod • 535. Steadier. SURVEY OF MARKETS.

The Bank of New South Wales has received the following cablo message from its London office dated December 16: — Wool: Unchanged at closing prices. Mutton : Ewes, 2£d to 3{jd. Steady, better outlook. Wethers, 3|d to 4|d. Firmer for heavywoights. Lamb: 5d to 7d; quiet, unchanged. Beef: 2£d to 3|d; moderate demand. Pork: 5d to 6£d; better inquiry lightweights. Butter, 83s. Cheese: 51s; very weak. SHIPMENTS OF SHEEPSKINS.

Some large shipments of dried sheepskins are to be made from Gisborne shortly. In the past most of the skins shipped from Now Zealand have gone through a pickling process to suit fellmongers’ requirements. More recently, however, the market has taken a turn in favour of dried skins. The skins are hung in the open for a short period and the drying prooess is completed indoors. Hoavy purchases have been made of skins for drying, and one firm alone has secured 25,000 from the Kaiti and Tokomaru Bay freozing works for ultimate dispatch to overseas markets. It is understood that large consignments are going to France, says an exchange.

LONDON MARKETS. HIGH COMMISSIONER’S REPORT. The Department of Agriculture ha s received the following cablegram, dated December 17, from tho High Commissioner for New Zealand, London: — Tallow.—Quiet demand at auction; 818 casks offered, of which 258 sold. Present spot quotations are:—Mutton: Fine, 27s to 27s 6d; fair to good, 23s 6d to 26s 6d; dark to dull, 21s to 225. Beef: Sweet and/or mixed, 24s to 28s; fair to good, 22s to 245; dark to dull, 20s to 21s. Mixed Fair to good, 22s to 233; dark to dull, 19s to 21s. Gut, etc. 19s to 21s. Hemp.—Manila market quiet and barely steady. Closing value for “K” grade for Doccmber-February shipment, £l6 12s 6d. Sisal: Steady demand at about last rates quoted. Now Zealand: Nominal owing to the absenco of demand, on the basis of highpoints for January-February shipment. £l4 10s.

Eggs.—Market firm. English, national pack, 163 6d to 225; ' English, ordinary pack, 16s 6d to 17s 6d; Danish, I3s 3d to 19s; Australian, 12s to 13s 6d; New Zealand, 15 to 171 b, per lolig hundred, sold 12s 9d to 143; 181 b per long hundred, slow, 14s to 15s.

FARMING NEWS. RURAL RATING. Following representations made by tho Stockowners’ Association the Adelaide Steamship Company has agreed to allow a 20 per cent, rebate on its schedule freight' rates on wool that does not realise 3d lb at auction. • The four freezing works in the Auckland province are at present operating at full capacity to cope with tho increased numbers of lamb ooming forward from all districts. Killing is almost solely confined to lambs of which more than 10,000 are being put through daily by means of the chain 6ystem. The Wool Fibre Research Association has received reports from all parts of the world in reference to tests made with the sheepbranding fluids originated by the Wool Industry Research Association. Tho tests are reported to be “absolutely satisfactory.” A suggestion that the use of the fluids should be made compulsory has not been favourably received at Bradford, where the opinion i 3 expressed that it will be better to educate Dominion woolgrowers in their use. Further consignments of the marking fluids are being sent oversea. The Grey Valley Farmers’ Union has approached the Railway Department regarding a reduction for the carriage of pigs and lambs from the West Coast to Canterbury. It has been shown that the freightage is much more for stock than for timber, the difference being actually 15s 3d per ton in favour of timber. The Department had previously stated that tho sheep wagons had to be hauled back empty and therefore allowance had to be made in the freight charge. The farmers, however, point out that most of tho wagons carrying timber are returned empty. Any rebate in this direction would be valuable to farmers.

“Present indications are that the yields during the coming harvest will be large," said an interested business man during the course of a conversation with a Timaru Herald reporter. He added that in travelling through a large portion of the district lately he had noticed that crops generally appeared to be in splendid condition, and so far had stood up well to the weather conditions. By reason of the fact that it was accompanied by cold temperatures, the rain as during the past week had not proved as damaging as it would have been had the temperatrues been warmer. No further cases of, mildew appearing in wheat had been reported to him.

WOOL PROCESSES. TERMS OF THE TRADE. THE MEANING OF “TOPS.” Every week-end a cabled report on tho Bradford top market is published. Tho rango of values given is keenly studied by tho man interested in the production or the disposal of wool, as it supplies an important index to the existing market conditions (says tho Auckland Herald). The intelligence it conveys to the man in the street, however, is of negligible proportions, for to him tho significance behind it is lost in a maze of technique. Probably ho is even unaware of what the term “top” means and regards tho matter as too far removed from his own particular sphero of business to be worth investigation. . . Of the multiplicity of terms used in the wool toxtile industry, there is none more common than this reference to “tops.” And none has a more simple implication. It simply indicates a stago in preparation for manufacture and represents tho climax of tho process through which wool must go before it is ready for spinning into yarn. “Top” is the name given to the wool after it has passed through the operation of combing, which extracts all tho short, faulty fibres from those which can bo most usefully employed in tho various branches of worsted manufaoturo. The combed wool comes from tho machine in the form of a thick _ ribbon, known as “combed silver,” and is wound into a ball-liko formation, a simple definition of a “top” therefore being a ball of combed wool.

MEANING OF “COUNTS.” Tho -typo of wool in a “top,” from the point of view of fineness or spinning quality, is indicated by a number known as the “count.” Tho coarser tho wool from which tho top was made the lower the count will bo, fine Merino types having a spinning quality of 80 or more, with progressively coarser halfbred and crossbred wools bringing the count down as low as 36. Tho standardised length of a hank of worsted yarn is 556 yards, and tho “count” represents the number of such hanks which can bo produced from one pound of “top” of that of wool. Thus a count, or spinning quality of 80 means that such wool will spin a thread of yarn 80 times 560 yards in length. It is the wool of the finest typo and tho higher spinning quality which is most in demand to-day. New Zealand wopl generally covers a wide range of quality, but comparatively little of it reaches the higher grades, a count of 56 being rarely exceeded. In tho Auckland Province the range is from 36 to 56; in Hawke’s Bay the count is mostly from 40 to 50; in \\ cllington from 36 to 56; at Wanganui, from 36 to’4B; in Canterbury, from 46 to 58; in Otago, from 46 to 58; and in Southland ,from 46 to 50. MANUFACTURE PROCESSES.

In Now Zealand one is accustomed to think of the woollen mill as a self-con-tained unit in that all tho processes of manufacture are completed in tho one establishment. In Great Britain, however, tho different processes have become specialised industries, especially far as the worsted trade is concerned. The comber prepares and manufactures tho tops—a business now monopolised largely. by Bradford, as far as Great Britain is concerned. Tho spinner takes the tops and spins them into yarn, and the manufacturer takes the yarn and weaves it into cloth. In many cases indiscriminate uso is made of tho word “woollen,” as it applies to tho wool textile industry. This is not an all-embracing term, there being a distinct differences between the requirements of tho “woollen” trado and thoso of tho “worsted” trade. The yams used by each section are the result of diffeiont piinciples of construction, the woollen yarn having the fibres mixed in a criss-cross fashion and the “worsted” yarns haying the fibres arranged on more parallel linos, with the shorter pieces or “noils” eliminated in tho process. Appropriate types of wool aro naturally chosen for each purpose.

MAIZE PRODUCTION.

HEAVY CROP IN POVERTY BAY. GISBORNE, Dec. 19. Gisborne maizo growers aro still finding difficulty in disposing of supplies at values which they consider satisfactory. Recently there has been a fair inquiry by buyers who are prepared to pay 3s lOd per bushel, f.0.b., for prompt shipment, but little business has boon done at this figure, which is 2d below sellers’ limits. A few. parcels havo gone south at 4s, but generally speaking tho tendency is to hold for a rise during tho autumn months. Despite relatively low prices, farmers still consider it mbro profitable to grow maize than embark in other agricultural pursuits, a point that is emphasisod by the fact that this season it is estimated 2200 to 2300 acres have been planted, compared with 1800 acres last year. It is expected that this year there will bo larger crops also as seasonal conditions have been cntirefy favourable, with ample moisturo in tho early stages and an absence of strong winds during late spring. Crops generally present a healthy appearance and some doubt is felt concerning marketing prospects, particularly as very little of tho past season’s supplies has yet been sold.

WELLINGTON STOCK EXCHANGE. YESTERDAY’S BUSINESS AND PRICES. An active inquiry for gilt-edged stocks, with slight variations in the prices of some Government loans, was tho principal feature of the Wellington market yesterday. The 4£ per cent., 1938 and 1939, were steady at £92 15s to £93, the former price being quoted for tho 1938 stock. A sale of tho 1939 stock at £93 5s was reported. Tho 5£ per cents., February and September, 1937, were a shade easier except tho February bonds, which were 10s. bettor. The 5 per cent, tax-free stocks, 1937, were 10s lower at £96 ss, and tho 5£ per cents., 1937, eased 5s to 10s. The demand for debentures ran wholly on city issues. Wellington Gas 6£ per cent, debentures were 5s up at £99 10s. Banks were again very quiet, with no variation in prices, except for New Zealands. A sale at 40s 6d late on Saturday was reported, yesterday’s closing prices being 40s, sellers 41s. Except a bid of 20s 6d for Goldsbrough, Morts, there was no demand for financial shares, which were a weak market, sellers casing their prices in several cases. Buyers were offering 24s 3d for Gear Meat shares, but sellers stayed at 275. New Zealand Refrigerating and Wellington Meat Export wore in request, but holders did not respond. Breweries showed a woakor tendency. New Zealand 3 eased to 24s 3d, sellors 25s 3d. Staples were sought- at 20s, sellers staying at 235. Tooth and Co. were wanted at 28s 6d, as against a sale last Thursday at 295. YESTERDAY’S QUOTATIONS. ’ Buying and selling quotations at yesterday’s final call on the Wellington Stock Exchange were as follow: —

Buyers. Sellers. N.Z. GOVT LOANS— £ s d. £ e. d. 4i p.c. Bonds, 1939 . . 93 0 — p.c. ditto, 1938 93 0 0 — 5£ p.c. ditto, Feb, 1937 99 0 0 — 51 p.c. ditto, Sep, 1937 98 17 6 — p.c. ditto, 1937 95 0 0 — 4£ p.c. Stock, 1939 93 0 0 93 10 0 41 p.c. ditto, 1938 92 15 0 93 10 0 b£ p.c. ditto, Feb. 1937 98 15 0 — 51 p.c. ditto, Sep. 1937 98 15 0 — p.c. ditto, 1937 95 0 0 — 61 p.c. ditto, 1934 98 15 0 — 5 p.c. ditto, tax free, 1937 DEBENTURES— 96 5 0 Auck City, 5i p.c., 1944 95 10 0 * Chch. City, 5£ p.c., 1944 96 10 0 — Dunedin City, 51 p.c., .1944 97 0 0 — Wol). City, 51 p.c., 1940 97 0 0 — Well. Harb. Bd. 51 p.c.. 1940 99 5 0 — Palmerston N., 6 p.c.. 1945 Mnkerua Drainage, 6 p.c 99 5 0 1946 — 94 5 0 Christchurch Drainage, 5| p.c., 1965 — Waitomo E.P. Bd., 6 p.c.. 97 10 0 1961 — 99 5 0 Well. Gas Co 99 10 0 — Well. Racing Club ... — 95 0 0 BANKS— Australasia 8 5 0 8 17 6 Comm, of Aust., ord. 0 13 4 0 14 0 National of Australasia, £10 paid .10 5 0 — New South Wales — 27 0 0 New Zealand 2 0 0 2 1 0 FINANCIAL— Goldsbrough, Mort ... 1 0 6 — National Mortgage ... — 1 10 0 N.Z. Invest., Mort. and Deposit — 0 7 6 N.Z. Loan nnd Merc. — 51 0 0 Well. Invest., T. & A. Well. Trust and Loan — 0 6 0 — 4 17 0 GASWellington, ord — 1 10 0 Ditto, pref 0 18 0 — INSURANCE— Aust. Prow Assce. ... 0 5 6 0 6 9 National — 0 14 2 South British 2 12 0 — MEAT PRESERVING— Goar 1 4 3 1 7 0 N.Z. Refrig., £1 paid 0 9 6 — Ditto, 10s paid 0 3 0 — Well. Meat Ex., pref. 0 15 0 — Ditto, ord 0 3 6 — TRANSPORT— Huddart, Parker, pref. 0 18 3 — WOOLLEN— . Wellington, ord — 5 6 6 Ditto, pref — 5 6 6 TIMBER— Bartholomew — 0 12 0 BREWERIESCarlton — 1 13 6 N.Z. Breweries 1 4 3 1 5 3 Staples and Co 1 0 0 1 3 0 Tooth and Co 1 8 6 1 11 0 MISCELLANEOUSBritish Tobacco, ord. *1 7 0 ; Burns Philp — 2 4 0 Dental and Medicnl ... — 0 6 3 Dominion Investments 1 1 0 — Electro. Zinc, pref. . 1 3 0 — Howard Smith, ord. — 0 10 0 National Electric — 0 8 0 N.Z. Drug Fanners’ Fertiliser ... — 3 0 0 — 0 13 6 Well. Queen’s Theatre Wilson’s Cement — 1 1 6 — 1 9 9 Woolworths (N.Z.), pref — 1 8 9 OILMoturoa, ord 0 3 11 0 4 6 MINING— Alexander — *1 1 0 Consol. Goldfields — *0 10 0 Golden Dawn 0 4 9 —

King Solomon .... *0 2 0 0 2 8 Mount Lyell ■ Waihi . .. .... f0 18 0 0 18 9 Big River Nokomai .... 0 10 .... 0 6 0 0 1 3 *Curn. dividend. fEx dividend.