TRADE OF THE COLONY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 89, 15 April 1903, Page 4

TRADE OF THE COLONY.

DROP IN WOOL VALUES,

ENORMOUS INCREASES!

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WELLINGTON, this dayWhat is an unusually interesting and instructive review- of the trade of, the' colony appears in the annual report of the Council of the. Chamber of Conir merce, which comes up for consideration at the annual meeting on Thursday, night. The figures will bear careful perusal, showing as they do the expansion of our colonial trade year by year. This yearns returns, as compared with the previous twelve months,, show a substantial increase, which was morover ,attained : in spite of a falling off of £334,000 in grain and grain stuffs, and an apparent decline of ,£700,000 in the value of wool. Talcing the twelve months ending on September 30, the true statistical'year for wool and some other of our most important the official return of the colony"s exports ■ are as follows, those for the previous year being shown within parenthesis :-n IWool, £3,141,985 (£3,541,688; sheepskins, £351.205 (£260,274); frozen meat, £2,084,250 (£2,203,593); tallow, £554,----793 (£309,619); butter and cheese/ £ 1,301.406 ( £1,092,784); gold, £ 1,912,----569 (£1,614,131); kauri gum, £453,803 (£460,548); timber, £226,472 (£288,----736); grain, whole and ground, £1.013,----035 (£ 1,347,106): hemp, £ 45>\S65{ £ 169,----850); other Nev, r . Zealand.produce, £1,----046,500 (£962.313); total New Zealand produce. £13.141,749 (£12,570,642); or with re-exports at £151,565 (£169,415) and specie, £9568 £14,564) a total of £13,302,852 (£12,754,621). The net increase in value of New Zealand producefor the year is £571,107.; The decrease in wool, however, is not real, but results from over-valuation in 1900-1, and if the value of the wool in two years be taken as equal the total shows an increase of £1,270,510, while the total of other products, apart from grain, exhibits an improvement of over £ 1,600,000. This increase arises partly from heavier ship- ( ments and partly from improved prices. In quantity wool shows an increase pi between 8 and 9 per cent.; in frozen meat ... of nearly 18 per cent.; tallow, about 37, per cent.; butter, nearly 25 per cent.;' kauri gum, between 17 and IS per cent.;, and hemp, 86 per cent. Cheese shows a reduction of over 25 per cent., and wheat and oats a still heavier falling off. »n----meat, tallow, butter and hemp, the; increase in quantity is further assisted h? improved prices. With kauri gum tne total value is rather less, in spite ot a ; good increase in weight, while Jim wheat the falling off is by : lower prices. In oats, on the other hand, the heavy shortage shown in quantity is nearly counterbalanced by improvement in price. The value of exports from Wellington for twelve, months is as follows:-Wool skins £679,897; frozen meat, £WJ,<«/ tallow, £189,378; butter and cheese, £340,213; hemp., £295,476; other £ej Zealand produce, £181,7 SO; total >c* Zealand produce, £2,316,521; £27,612; totals, £2,344,133. Wellmg ton's total shows an increase on; tne previous year of £402,130. In spite of an apparent but unreal de against 34,401,3421bs in 1900 ondtM realisation was at least ** S° od of the earlier year. Setting aside statistic! shortage in jooj, the tote shows an increase of £ ° oo > ,iJ \°L -<& 31 per cent., and the, actual probably still more favourable. W» Tin L case of the cx-portj. oMj colony, the improvement "J**"** in official statistics,