The Sun.
London, England, 1856-03-21 00:00:00

MONEY MARKET

AND
00111111ERCIAL INTELLIGENCE.

CITY, Two O'CLOCK.

This being Good Friday, is observed as a strict
holiday in the City, all the principal places of
business being closed..

In the Colonial Produce Markets this week
there has been more activity. Sugar has been in
demand for home use and exportation, and an ad-
vance.of Gd. to ls. per cwt. Las occurred. Coffee
has been dull, and holders have not pressed sales.
Rice has been dull, but saltpetre has risen Gd. to
is. per cwt. For spices there has been very little
inquiry. The following information on the tallow
trade is taken from Messrs. Smith and Charles'
circular :

" A great change has taken place in our market since
we addressed you on the 17th inst. The Liverpool March
Tallow Monopoly Association, to whose operations we
drew your attention on the 22d ult., has fallen to pieces
in consequence of the desertion of one of the members of
the confederation. To save himself he, it now appears,
has been for some time quietly disposing of his share in
the adventure to the "Bears," and he would probably
have succeeded in getting rid of the whole of his tallow
but for the certainty that began to be felt last week as to
the pacific termination of the Paris Conference, and the
suspicion which, at the same time, bzgan to prevail that
there must be some treachery in the Liverpool camp.
" The monopoly which has just expired is the third that
has been attempted within our market within the memory
of several of our merchants—and all with the like result.
in the two former instances talents of a high order and
unlimited resources were associated ; in the latter the
smallness of the stock appears to have furnished the temp-
tation, and alaaolt to have justified confidence entertained
in the result. But genius, capital, and conditions, how-
ever favourable, avail but little iu opposition to the ordi-
nary laws cf commerce—a truth which finds a striking
exemplification in the cases we have cited, and which might
be further illustrated by a reference to the past history of
the tobacco, sugar, and other trades. Enough, we trust,
has been advanced to induce our friends to stand aloof
from similar adventures, which cannot fail to be pernicious
to the community and perilous to themselves.

" In the midst of a panic such as that we now experience,
it may not be an easy matter to take a clear view of
the future prospects of our market. We prefer, therefore,
to quote from a circular issued by ourselves last November,
when the restoration of peace was as yet distant and un-
certain, but in which we take that contingency, among
many others, into our calculation With an average
supply of tallow, and apart altogether from any expecta-
tion that the soap tax would be remitted, the price of tal-
low had advanced in the spring of 1853 to 455. Assuming
435. to be its nominal value previously to the abrogation
of the soap duty, it may fairly be assumed that the
price would subsequently have ranged ss. per cwt.
higher, had the ordinary operations of the trade
not been interfered with by the war.' It will be ob-
served that we say ' with an average supply,' Ice. Now,
our stock of let of April next will be about 21,000 casks,
against 34,000 in 1855, 35,000 in 1851, 32,000 in 1851,
43,000 in 1852, and 36,000 in 1851; in all these periods,
with the exception of last year, the stock at the ontports
has been greater than at present. The average supply at
St. Petersburg may be taken at 115,000, ,but this year it
cannot be expected to reach 10'),000. The production of the
South of Russia will all be required for Austria, which is
becoming annually a larger consumer of tallow, whilst, as
respects South America and Australia, the exportation
will be decidedly short. Of substitutes, palm and cocoa-
nut oil are the principal; the former will probably be
about an average supply ; the latter one thousand tons
less, so that the average supply of grease on which our calcu-
lation of last November was based, will not prevail this sea-
son, and consequently a higher price than 48s. may reason-
ably be expected. And we may add that the stock of soap
and candles in this country and on the Continent is unpre-
cedentedly short, and that should the restoration of peace
be attended (as it is confidently believed that it will) with
general prosperity in trade, a very large demand for tal-
low will be the result. The preceding remarks will have
prepared you to hear of the decline which we now have to
record : Spot 47's 6d, March 47s 6d to 475, April 475,
Oct. and Dec. 47s 6d. Tallow Elaine 45s ; tallow oil 318;
town tallow 44s 3d net cash. We quote palm oil 375; lin-
seed oil 34s ; cocoa nut oil—Cochin, 38s 6d ; Ceylon, 37s
6d. The public sales consisted of 391 cks., of which 181
cks. wore sold. Australian sheep and beef, none. Arrival,
1,722 ; delivery, 498.