INCREASES ON TIMBER.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 172, 23 July 1930, Page 8

INCREASES ON TIMBER.

NO CANADIAN PREFERENCE

LOCAL INTERESTS- SURPRISED,

As far as timber interests are concerned, the most surprising thing about the new scale of Customs and excise duties is that there is no mention of a Canadian preference clause. The fact that no preference is given to Canadian timber Avill come as a surprise to the delegation which visited New Zealand some months ago. In local timber circles it is believed that the Government omitted Canadian preference with the object of bargaining for a lower duty on butter imported into Canada from New Zealand..

"The new scale will be some assistance to the King Country sawmillers, although I can't say that it will help them to a very great extent," said Mr. D. L. J. Clayton, manager of the Kauri Timber Company. The increased duty on Californian redwood "and cedar would be the chief advantage to the local millers. In regard to Oregon (Douglas fir), Mr. Clayton said that the increase would' not have a big effect, as it was falling in price. The increase on dressed timber would be more than a' moderate help to some New Zealand millers, as there had been quite a quantity of dressed timber coming into Wellington and South Island ports.

The opinion that the Government would have done better by putting a bigger increase on small timber and leaving the duty on the bigger unaltered, was expressed by Mr. W. B. Leyland. The big timber, he said, did not compete Avith local timber, while it gave much additional employment -in the mills. The quality of the bigger timber was also superior to that of the smaller, as the wood was more matured.