The Press. — London, England, 1856-01-05 00:00:00

'Doug glarket atO FRIDAY EVENING. THE return from the Bank of England, published this evening, for the week ending Dee. 20, shows the following changes iu the position of that estab lishment compared with the return for the preceding week : Increase in Circulation Increase in Public Deposits 41)11,179 Increase in Other Deposits Increase in Government Securities 490,09) Increase in Other Securities Decrease of Coin and Bullion Increase of Rest 15,451 l)ecrease of Reserve Present circulation, exclusive of Post Bills This return is the last, and the most unfavorable one, for the year 1855; and it will attract much attention from the changes which it exhibits. For the first time for some weeks the active circulation shows an increase ; and having stated this, we have mentioned the most favorable feature in the whole document. The increase in the Public Deposits is , again considerable, but the aggregate is not sufficient to enable the Chancellor of the Exchequer to dis pense with assistance from the Bank to enable him . to meet the dividends payable next week. The . amount of this item is 5,843,932/. ; in the corm• sponding week of last year it was 6,695,4301. The increase in "Other Deposits" is probably owing to payments in anticipation of the last instalment of the Turkish Loan. The decrease in Government Securities, amounting to nearly half a million, is a , proof' that sales of Stock Lave been effected to that extent with a view, probably, to increasing the item on the other side of the account of Public Deposits. The increase in " Other Securities " again represents the extremely active demand upon the Bank for dis- , counts. This item now amounts to 19, 7 77,860 L, being within 200,0001. of the maximum of the year, wlneh was on the 29th of September. The decrease in the stock of bullion in the issue department is 220,130/. ; but if we deduct from that amount , 18,528/. increase in the gold and silver coin in the banking department, the net decrease is 101,6021. , a very considerable amount when it is remembered that the decrease last week exceeded 300,0001. The reserve has diminished no less than 481,3271., and $ that extent the Bank's means of affording accom m , dation is reduced. This reduction is large, and it is in excess of the late addition 475,0301. notes by which this item was increased a few weeks ago. A very active demand for money has it-been preys in; throughout the week. All the banks and brokers have been full of bills, and the rates, espe cially on Monday and Tuesday, were heavier on the general run of paper than at any period since the last great monetary crisis. Yesterday somewhat more ease wes apparent; and the commercial accep tinces falling due to day, the 4th, which were ex -ITsmely heavy, were, on the whole, exceedingly well met. It is reported that the advances made by the of England on Monday amounted to more than 900,0001. This is believed to be true ; but it should be explained that they were made not solely upon commercial paper, but to a great extent upon the scrip of the Turkish Four per Cent. Guaranteed Loan, of which the last instalment but one of ten per cent., or 500,004., was paid on Monday. The greater portion of these securities are held by mem bers of the Stock Exchange; and., in point of fact, the Bank of England paid the instalment for them, and will derive a considerable profit from the opera tion. The commercial paper discounted that day has been set down at 400,0001. It was less on Tues day, and still less on Wednesday and yesterday, though the discount-houses found employment for all their surplus funds on those days. It is esti mated, that the railway calls payable during the week have amounted to 200,0001. Considering, then, the natural demand for looney at the end and be ginning of the year, the concurrence of considerable railway calls, and of a loan instalment, besides the demand for advances in anticipation of the spring manufacturing trade, the tightness of the market at this period is not very surprising, and it would not have attracted much attention, if it had not been accompanied by undoubted signs of diffi culty in some other respects. Two of these signs are obvious. The first is, that the Government must again become a large borrower of capital, probably upon harder terms than those of the last loan ; and next, that the position of the Bank in respect to its essential ability to assist and support commercial interests is, at the present moment, weaker compara tively than it has been for many years past. As to the circumstan.es of the Government, they are just these. The ordinary revenue of the quarter is, in round numbers, 4,000,0001. below the income; and the Chancellor of the Exchequer wili temporarily require about 1,000,0001. from the Bank to enable him to provide for the dividends payable next week, unless 166 THE PRESS. be sells Stock to nearly that amount ; and he has been in the market with that object every day this week. The Exchequer Bills which he has power to issue can scarcely be put upon the market at the present discount. Reasoning from the known cir cumstances of his position, of which this is a very in adequate sketch, we may look for the of a large loan, a c0n,,t,10....0te tending of floating securitieQ, eisa sates of as much Stock as the market can bear without a great depreciation of present prices. These are all influences adverse to an easy financial condition ; and the primary symptom of their action at the present moment is to be found in the preparation which all parties are making to be well supplied with reserves to carry them through to the opening of the summer trade. With respect to the position of the Bank, its bullion, according to last week's return (December 22nd), was only 10060,505/. In the week during which the present high rates of interest were fixed it was 11;205,855/. It has therefore diminished 636,2601. in ten weeks. This reduction would not inspire much anxiety under ordinary circumstances, because in ordinary times it would soon be replaced; but it must be ze• tnembered that supplies have lately come in very slowly from Australia, that we can expect none in the usual course of trade from California, and that for every shipment, as it does arrive, we have all Europe against us as competitors paying premiums upon every purchase, a policy which we can never imitate or follow. Certainly the reserve of the Bank, out of which it extends accommodation to trade, and by which its ability is to be estimated, is 2,000,000/. higher than in October. This is the most favorable feature iu its position ; it is a feature calculated to sustain commercial confidence; but the aggregate of this item (December 22nd) is little more than 7,000,0001., which is barely sufficient for an institution of such vast magnitude and national importance. With these relative amounts of bullion and reserve, and the concurrence of a constant drain of gold, there are no indications whatever of money becoming cheaper for a long time, but rather of its rising in value ; and it is in relation to this latter probability that the de mand is just now so urgent. The Donald PI aye, referred to in our last, brought 116,000/. ; about 62,000/. came in on Mon day from America, and 3,13,0/, have arrived from the Peninsula. The West Indian packet, which arrived to-day, has brought 630,000/. chiefly in silver. Of the former arrivals, the only part retained in this country has been that from the Pe ninsula. All the rest has gone to France and the continent of Europe. Besides, 30,7421. in gold has been sent to Egypt and the East Indies, much of it in payment for corn, and 246,255/. in silver to India anti China, the demand for which still continues, whilst about 80,000/. in sovereigns continues to go at intervals of about ten days to the seat of war. About 400,000/. is now due from Australia. The comparative exchanges still show that gold is dearer in Paris and Hamburg than in London, and that there is no profit ou its shipment from America to Eng land. The Trade reports for the week are upon the whole goad,. A great production is undoubtedly gourg on in nearly every branch of manufacture, but stocks are not accumulating. Coasols have fallen considerably since our last, owing to the adverse influences referred to above. On Saturday they closed at 88/ to a. On Monday and every subsequent day the Government and the Bank were sellers of Stock, which was taken up on the part of the public, but not without undergoing a daily fall until yesterday, when the closing price was 871 to a. The decline thus established is equal to 11 per cent. To day they closed at 87/ to /, being exactly 11 lower than last Saturday. Consols are now within I of the lowest price in the year just past, which was 86/. Railway Shares are all lower, owing to the effect of the fall in Consols, but not quite in the same proportion. The transactions of the week has been upon the most limited scale, and the purchases chiefly for iuvestment. The traffics continue good. Foreign Securities have been comparatively neg • lected. The fall iii the Turkish Six per Cents. since Saturday has been from 83/ to a to 81k to I, or more than 2/. The Guaranteed Four per Cent. is about I loser. At the close to day the former were Mk to j, and the latter 4 to 3i dis. Exchequer Bills have been at 12s. die., but on Tuesday they improved to 10s. upon a large pur• chase, and the present quotation is from O. to ss. di e. . . . Juiut-stock B mik Share.; maintain their price but few transactions have taken place in them. The settlement on the Paris Bourse on Wednes day proved extremely heavy, and it was not accom plished without diffieult3. The average rate for continuations in Reines and shares was fifteen per cent., and at one time even twenty per cent. was paid. Speculative sales, founded upon the diminish ing hopes of peace, have again been largely made for the account at the end of this month. To-day the opening price of the Three per Cents. was Of. bOe. SATURDAY, and the closing Of. 30c. for money, and 63f. 66e. for account, being nearly per cent lower than th ,, __....risnment of the Imperial The capital to be subscriber] me Limited Liability Act for Hotel 0 _ ...puny, whose projectors propose to pur &lase the site of the National Gallery, is 1,000,0001., in :0/. shares. • - - At the adjourned meeting of the Crystal Palace Company to-day the report of the committee of shareholders was received. NEW STF.AV-SHIP COMPA.NT.—The Limited Lia bility Act of last year is beginning to be brought iutu practical operation, and, so far as we can at pre sent judge, with advantage to commercial enterprise, and to the public generally. " The London Auxiliary Screw Steam-ship Company " is started on this prin. ciple. The great demand for steam-ships created by the enormous amount of transport service required by the Government, and the high freights which consequently prevail., have made the steam-shipping interest uuprecedentedly prosperous, and the supply has been quite unequal to the demand, our foreign and colonial postage system having been disarranged by the scarcity of vessels. The company now before the public propose to build a fleet of iron clipper vessels fitted with the auxiliary screw, and to be em ployed on any stations or service affording the most profitable employment to their tonnage. The enter prise is a legitimate and very promising one, and with ordinary good and scrupulous management— a point of the first importance—can scarcely fail of proving remunerative to the shareholders, and of affording new facilities to our commerce and to the service of Government. Similar companies when well conducted have proved highly profitable, and, in this case the company will start with the fairest pro spects, as its vessels will be constructed on the best principle, combining economy with speed, and with all the latest improvements which science has been able to suggest. BRITISH Ft OFF to: Closing Pricts. EAL QUOTATION. Mond. Tuesd. Wed. Thurc i Friday. -------"--_-.--. l _______l_____._ ----.-- -11 i) shut 88i 81 71,27 i i 87i i d7i i me elei 8:67f 1 t• 7 l mi 4. 88i tBB i,BB i 1 bii 87i g 1 3e 1 3i 20G ' irii 10 12 7d 10 7 $ per Cent.Consols Ditto for Account $ per Cents Reduced 3 per Cents Long Annuities Rank Stock, 7 per Cent 206 e I 01111i111111 Exch. Bills, 2id. per diem 'mils Bonds, (1,0u01.) 1 8 d 1 10 51 BANK OF ENGLAND. An Account, puretTaTi - tri - o - teACIICh and tTtli Victoria, cap. 32 for the week ending on Saturday, the 29th day 01 Dec., 1056. iSRUC DIZPAUTMENT. Notes issued .... X24,v64,405 Government Debt X 11,015,100 Other Securities .. 3,159,900 Gold Coin it Bullion 10,189,465 Silver Bullion .... -- 824,664,466 £24,664,465 BANKINO UI ProprletoraTapital4l4,s33, o oo Rest Public I)eposiue 3,843,932 Other Deposits Seveu 1h43 , Jt other 131119 PARTMENT. Government Seou rities (including Dead Weight An.) 410.425.292 Other Securities 1U,777,860 Notes 5,983,8.50 Gold & Silver Coln 030,c7.3 801,908 £36797080 * Including Exchequer, Savings Banks, C, National Debt, and Divi head Accounts. £36,7771.80 issiouers of Wed. JS 9 ii 8 79 81 At 41 7$ 8 70 81 41 4} 10 A 5 4 d 11, 2 17 9 691 7 0 1 h7i hi 102 4 514 2! 71.4 7 33 4 6 di C4l 4 43 29 30 5 i id of 21 3 101 3 73 5 11 9 544 7 i 5 6 34 3 28 8 ;20 5 2 i 2 i 1 i I 34 6 111 6i 110 2 LI 9 LT 9 1511 2i' 93 4 0 931 41 jag 4 43 4}l 23 30 1 J 1 41 101 3 ;a II 2 '4 7 132. 3 1 27 9 125 xd 2 I i alltR. 11 : 8 ., 111Jui: 2 74 8 79 81 It) * I d I 11 2 17 9 69 70 '7'24 3' 03 6 1 6 94 4 - !A : 74 8 !79 f4l 4t 10 2' lii a 2 d 117 9 83 701 9 , 871 8, 1102 J2} 782 93 3 6 41 '631 4,1 I} 42 4 ; -d 29 30'29 301 di 44 105i44 022 4 101 3101 1 173 5 73 11 2 111 2 113 6 !sai zir, ;Hi 211 27 9 1128 xd 2 t is I 35 7 Oi it.walS-- Aberdeen Bina. Wolv. & Stour Val Bristol and Exeter Caledonian Chester and Holynead Cork and Bandon Dublin * Belfast June. b:ast. Anglian Eastern 0 iliac (B) East Lancashire Eastern Counties Great Northern (It. St.h. and Wst of Ire. Great Western Lancashire& Yorkshire Lon., Tilbury, &Sthend Lon., Brighton, ac London and lilackwall London awl Nrth-West Ilidlaud Newmarket. Newry and Enniskillen Norfolk Nrthrn. Counties Union North British North Staffordshire North-Western Oxf., Wroatr., and Wolv. Scottish. Central Scottish Midland South Devon South-Eastern and Dov. South. Western South Wales Waterford & Limerick ISCALLANEOUS- Australian Agricultural Canada Crystal Palace CrystalPalaceofFrance North British Aus. Laud Peel River Land & M. Scottish Aust. Invest. South Australian Land Van Diemen's Land 1124 131 i I 11 35 7, 177tair. a 3 79 81 159 e 2 I 3 WI 11 ll7 2 9 •o 9 7o 181 s i. _ 102 bli 2i i76i 93 A l 6 •931 4: ii li 148 0 I :19 30 !di 3 1 101 3 7$ a 2 I SO ire 5 i 33 3 126 8 1,120 74 - 1 8 f it 1 34 8