RETALIATION?

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 222, 19 September 1929, Page 12

RETALIATION?

U.S. TARIFF INCREASE. NEW ZEALAND'S POSITION. COMMERCE MINISTER'S VIEWS. f The suggestion "that New Zealand i should retaliate against the increase in t the United States tariff was reiterated . in tho House of Representatives yester- . day when the Estimates of the Depart- ; ment of Industries and Commerce were under discussion. The Minister of Industries and Comi merce (the Hon. J. G. Cobbe) said the . duties in the U.S.A. did not apply 10 , tiie whole of the goods New Zealand . exported to U.S.A. Ho admitted ; that tho duty on meat and wool was high, but it was a remarkable fact that . 74 per cent of the exports of New Zealand to U.S.A. were admitted free of Customs duty. Mr. D. Jones (Mid-Canterbury): They ! make the other duties so high that we can't send our goods there. ; Mr. Cobbo said he had exact figures on tho subject. Our trade with America was well worth consideration. Mr. C. A. Wilkinson (Egrnont) pointed out that articles now going into U.S.A. free of duty were to be taxed by 10 ' per cent. The fact remained that the goods we wanted to ship to U.S.A. could not enter the States because of the high tariff wall. There was a charge of fid on butter, 2Jd on cheese, 3d on beef, 3id on lamb, and l/4Jd-on wool, all of which were extremely high—too high for us t-o get them in. lie said he was wondering whether the amount we paid for shipping services for trade with the U.S.A. was worth while. The vessels trading with the United States were not allowed to go to two American ports; 1 they had to go from a British port to San Francisco. America was discriminating against us in other ways, and we should treat them in the same manner and raise our duties on American goods. The matter would have to be considered sooner or later. , "There is no intention whatever on the part of the Industries and Commerce Department to do anything whatever to hinder trade with America," replied Mr. Cobbe. "Onr object is to do all tho trade we possibly can," It was true that tho American tariff was high against certain of our primary products. Mr. Wilkinson had raised this question, but tho Hoiise would bo glad if Mr. Wilkinson could suggest how America could be induced to reduce the tariff. The American farmers were at present pretty formidable. Mr. W. J. Poison (Stratford) pointed out that New Zealand was a small country, and said we could not hope to influence the U.S.A. very much by making representations against the proposed duties. It was true that America looked favourably to the Pacific as a future sphere for trade expansion, and if New Zealand and Australia combined and mado representations, something might be done. It was quite possible that the U.S.A. might agree to a reciprocal bargain with these two countries. '• Mr. Cobbe said it was all very well to talk about such an arrangement, but tho Americans were very independent and did not care very much about our trade. He did not know of any argument that could be used to induce them to amend their tariff so far as New Zealand was conccrned.