The piece goods market during the past week has been character-feed by total inactivity where new Uusiness is concerned. Neither in British nor Japanese cotton lines have any orders been placed, and 93 so far as can be ascertained a few {edd lots of woollens have constitute fd_the total business.
There are numerous lines in which dealers have not yet placed orders for next spring, but they] continue at present to hold In the first place there is the di ference in Manchester and local market prices, and then in view of the drop in American raw cotton and likewise the fall in exchange, the tendency is to wait upon the jecurse of events, the hope here being that, prices' at Home will go lower. As a consequence business fs-at the moment at a standstill where forward bookings -are concerned.
Japanese goods from stock are jxoing into consumption -uormally ite of the boycott, and the ing taken for the Yangtze. The conclusion: of hostilities in the north, however, has_ given more confidence to sich centres as Peking, which has been buying more.
The Yuenfong Auction Conditions were not so. satisfactory at the Yuenfong auction on [Thurday, owing largely to the paralysis of trade on the Yanets oral sold was 98. package: Prices were generally on the easy side, and declines were recorded in Ttalians to the extent of 34, mace, lin Velvets 12 mace, and Poplins, 3 mace. "A somewhat similar tendency [prevailed "in the case of Whites which were about one mace down generally. One important. excep-ion, "however, was seen. in pure finish "White Shirtings which ad~ lvaneed very nearly 11.1 on quite rong support from Tientsin. This] ras about the only bright feature lor the sale, the general tone being Jobviously influenced by the floods jand probably also by the big slump lin cotton.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.