Mexico weekly ledger., 1895-10-24
W. G. PRESS & CO.,
Grain and Provision Commission Merchants,
q and 4 Sherman St., Chicago.
In their special market letter say:

In their special market letter say:
Conflicting influences have, during
the past week, held our wheat market
within a rather narrow range, and the
speculation has, in consequence, been
restricted to the usual scalping and
hedging operations; the latter, however,
not being SO important a factor as it
would be were quotations higher. The
low prices current at country points
tempt buyers to forward their grain
without making sales for future de-
livery against it, OF to store it without
hedges, believing that a future demand
will enable them to dispose of it at
enhanced values. The movement at
the Northwest, and more liberal offer
ings at interior winter wheat points,
have tended to check speculative buy
ing. and a very liberal increase in the
worlds available stocks has blasted
the hopes of bulls who looked for an
improvement in the FOREIGN demand.
The loss to Europeans of the India and
Argentine movement is more than
supplied by increased Danubian ship
ments, which are assuming quite large
proportions. The domestic demand for
-four is less urgent, spring wheat millers
having taken advantage of the retarded
movement of winter wheat to supply
dealers in winter wheat sections with
liberal stocks of spring wheat flour.
Should the winter wheat movement in
crease before these -four stocks are con-
sumed the premium now existing will
probably disappear. These are some
of the commercial factors that are now
confronting the trade. In addition,
there are speculative influences that
seem to be fully as potent, chief among
them being a marked revival in specu-
lative activity in many commodities,
and in stocks and bonds. The revival,
while at present largely confined to the
United Kingdom and Continental Eu.
rope, will doubtless, in due time, be
more pronounced in America, and
cheap grain should attract the atten-
ton of the speculative leaders. Thus
far the multitude has been absorbed in
bulling Kaffir stocks and bonds, and
cotton. Great fortunes have been made
on the up-turn, and foreign advices
state that the speculative tide is still
rising. With the probability that this
speculative wave will, before many
months, sweep over our country, We
see no encouragement for short sellers
of wheat, even though they may gain
temporary victories on the large re-
ceipts and inadequate demand. Prices
are too low to make great gains out of
a further decline, and are low enough,
as we have frequently stated, to insure
sharp reactions from a continuous de-
cline of a few days duration. The
prospects of the next winter wheat crop
may at any moment stimulate buying,
the reports at present being far from
flattering. Complaints of drouth and
of decreased acreage are daily becOm-
ing more numerous.
Corn husking is now general, and
while in some sections the yield is dis
appointing, the crop as a whole will be
enormous. We have advices from 500
points throughout the West which war
rant this statement. Prices quoted at
interior points are irregular, ranging
from 12c to zoe, being regulated, appar-
emily, more by the fancy Of the quoter
than the value of the corn.
Oats continue dull and featureless,
with but little speculation in futures.
They are too low for bears to sell short,
and too abundant for bulls to buy.
Gomplaintsaef-hoE cholera continue
to multiply and constitute about the
only noteworthy feature in provisions.