BRITISH MOTOR EXPORTS

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 243, 13 October 1936, Page 18

BRITISH MOTOR EXPORTS

NEW ZEALAND'S BIG LEAD,

The high export figures of the British motor industry for the first six months of this year are a source of satisfaction, states "The Auto-car," London. They amounted to 24,190 private cars, worth £2,794,318, as compared with 23,198 units, worth £2,831,889 in the corresponding period of 1935. The value is thus slightly below that of last vear, but that year was a record, and the £5,000,000 figure was handsomely passed in the twelve months. It is creditable that the progress made in export's of recent times should show 110 tendency to slacken. Moreover, the number of units is in excess of that for last year. South Africa, formerly our largest customer, which took £472.534 woi th in January-June, 1934, £434,541 in the same period of 1935, has now dropped to second place, the total amounting only to £395,102. New Zealand lias risen from £242,150 in Janu-ary-June, 1934, to £420,202 in the 1935 period, and to the startling figuie of £037,882 for the first half of this year a very big lead indeed from South Africa. The export figures in general can only properly be appreciated when they are compared with the import returns for the same period—os3l units, worth £1.200,440, for January-June last, a drop on the corresponding 1935 total of 9270 cars worth £1,402,791. If other industries could show such a favouiable balance, the streets not only of London, but even of Jarrow, would indeed be paved, with gold.