The Express.
London, England, 1866-11-08 00:00:00

MONEY M

REDUCTION IN THE BANK RATE OF
DISCOUNT.

ONII o'CLucit.
The directors of the Bank of England have to-
day reduced the rate of discount from 4i per cent.,
at which it was fixed on the 27th of September, to
4. The weekly return, whioh will be published
to-morrow, shows, it is understood, a further dis-
, tinct improvement in the accounts of the este-
, blishment.

The discount market is quiet to day, and very
few transactions have been reported. The rate for
choice bills is 3,1 to / per cent., or to below
the reduced charge at the Bank. It is questioned,
therefore, whether any real increase of business at
that establishment will be reported, notwithstand
ing the lower terms current there. In the Stock
Exchange the quotation for short loans is 3 per
cent. _ .

The discount establishments have lowered their
terms for money at call from 31 to 3 per cent., and
at seven or fourteen day's notice from 32 to 3/.
The joint-stock banks now allow 3 per cent. for
money on deposit, instead of 3i, with the excep-
tion that the London and Westminster give
only 2 per cent. for sums below 500/.
The share markets opened flatly this morning,
and the tendency towards lower prices has since
somewhat increased, but, in the absence of business
prices in moat cases are quoted the same as yester-
day. The reduction in the Bank rate, having been
fully expected, has had no favourable effect. Con-
sols are unchanged, and the movements in English
railway stocks and foreign bonds are confined to a
few descriptions.
Corm°ls are now quoted 89i to J, cum div., for
money, and 88i to 1, ex diva for the account
(December).
Turkish Bonds of 1865 are in demand, and
have advanced 1 per cent., but Spanish Passive,
the Committee's Certificates, Italian of 1861, and
Mexican show no change. Turkish Bonds of 1862
are quoted 561 i to 57/ ; ditto, 1865, 311 tog ;
Greek, In to 141; Spanish Passive, 21 to ;
ditto Certificates, 131 to 14 ; Italian of 1861, 54g
to I ; Mexican, 16i to 1.
United States 15-20 Bonds have improved 1
per cent., viz., to 68Li to 1, but Erie and Illinois
Central railway shares are without alteration ; at
501 to 511 and:6l to 771 respectively.
Anglo-American Telegraph and Atlantic Tele-
graph 8 per cent. preference shares are about
2s. 6d. lower ; the former are quoted 14 3-16 to
5-16 ; and the latter, 41 to 1.
International Financial shares are quoted
to 11 die. ; London Financial, 15ii to 14/ die. ;
General Credit, 21 to 2 die. ; Credit Foncier,
50 to 51 die. ; National Discount, 91 to 10 prem. ;
and Hudson's Bay, 161 to 1.
About 81,0001. in bar gold was bought by the
Bank yesterday, while 75,000/. sovereigns for Brazil,
and 10,000 for Egypt were withdrawn. During
the week 212,000/. has been sent in from abroad,
and 128,000/. taken out for exportation. The
demand for gold fur the continent has diminished,
owing to the fineness of the l'aris Exchange.
The City of Washington, from New York, has
brought 63,000!. in specie.
The biddings for bills on India took place
yesterda, at the Bank of England. The propor-
tions allotted were—to Calcutta, 14,55.01 Mors. ; to
Madras, 42,000r5. ; and to Bombay, 12.S7,(MMlrs.
The minimum price was fixed at Is. 110. for all
the Presidencies. Tenders on Calcutta and Madras,
at Is. 111 d., will receive about 80 per cent.; and
on Bombay, at ls. 1l d. in full. Above these
rates in full. It appears from the foregoing that
the government minimum was fixed 2 per cent.
higher than on the previous occasion ; and the
prices paid by the bidders represent, in the ease
of Calcutta and Madras, an advance of L, per cent.,
though the rate on Bombay remains unaltered.
It may thus be inferred that the demand for re-
mittance to the East is still sonioN hat on the
increase.
Subjoined is a copy of a telegram, dated Bom-
bay, the 27th lilt. and received yesterday :
Exchange on Loinion for a first-class hank bill, A months'
sight, per rupee, 2.i. td. ; the Calcutta rite for ditto, per
rupee, 2s. ; Exchange on Calcutta it sight,loli to
101 1; Government 4 percent. piper, rs. ; ditto:. ditto,
rs. 300 ; ditto 51 ditto, rs. 1104 ; Bank of Bombay rate of
discciiint, 8 ; bar gold, 9101, touch, rs. per toll. 1 G 10-10 ;
bar silver, 17 to El betterness, rs. per 100 tolas,
:1,000 hales cotton stilled front ltombay during the fortnight.
The drafty of Messrs. Dent and Co., the in-
fluential and well-known merchants, of China,
have been refused acceptance by their London
agents, Messrs. Dent, Palmer. and Co. The house,
which has been established many years, and has
always occupied a position of the first rank, has
agencies at Hong Kong, Shair;liae, and Foo-choo-
foo. Its partners are Mr. John Dent, Francis
Chomley, Henry W. Dent, Alexander Turing, and
H. P. Harmsen. The business of the Finn was of
great magnitude up to about twelve months ago,
and, though it has since been consid•-rally cur-
tailed, the engagements are roughly estimated at from
two to three millions sterling. Mr. ,John Dent, the
head partner, returned to London three years ago
with a fortune of about 800,001., which he had
amassed in China. Upon the formation last year
of the Blakely Ordnance Company (which is now
being wound up), he joined that concern as chair-
man, and his cngagcmants in connexion therewith
are said to reach 120,000/. The partners have
always been considered very wealthy, but about
a year ago they suffered a loss of no less than
200,0001. by the inalversations of a Portuguese
clerk in their employment at Shanghae, who was
sentenced to seven years' imprisonment. It is
fully expected that the creditors will receive the
whole of their claims, the resources of the house
being still large. It ill be proper to said that the
firm of Dent, Palmer, and Co., of London, is a
totally distinct and separate concern from that of
Dent and Co., of China.
It appears that a number of the shareholders in
the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway Com-
pany are proposing to petition parliament, with a
view to obtain a searching parliamentary inquiry
into the whole of the affairs of that undertaking.
The London and North Western Railway traffic
return shows this week an increase of 6,8661. over
last year • the Midland, an increase of 4,9001.; the
North London, an increase of 5f141. ; the Great I
Western, an increase of 3,6281.: the Great Northern,
an increase of 1,938/. ; and the London and South
Western, an increase of 804/.
Meetings of the creditors of the Agra and Master-
man's Bank (Limited) are to be held at the London
Tavern, as follows, viz., for creditors above 100/.,
on Monday, the 12th Mat. ; and for creditors of or
below 1001., on Tuesday, the 13th. It is explained
that this division is necessary, owing to the large
number of creditors.
An extraordinary general meeting of the share-
holders in Smith, Knight, and Company (Limited)
is called for the 14th inst., for the purpose of
considering the expediency of winding up the com-
pany voluntarily.'
A special general meeting of the shareholders of
Halcomb and Company, sack contractors (Limited),
is convened for the 15th instant, "for the
purpose of confirming a resolution of the board full
of
directors to allow the members to pay up in f
on 2,000 shares in the company."
The annual meeting of the ithymney Iron Com-
pany is called for the 21st inst.
The subjoined report on the market for American
securities is extracted from the circular of Messrs.
Satterthwaite and Co. :
The business in the London market for American secu-
rities has again been on a very limited scale, and the
transactions which have taken plate have been chiefly on
American or continental amount. Quotations show no
alteration of an moment, at the close United Stares 5.20
Bonds being 681 to ; Illinois Central shares, 761 to
sad Brigs 501 to lg. For Atlantic and Great Westerns
Consolidated Bonds we have again tr note a fair inquiry,
but the Csdificataii of Debenture have bogus little more

offered.