TEXTILE IMPORTS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 230, 28 September 1943, Page 4

TEXTILE IMPORTS

QUOTAS INCREASED

DOMINIOM FAVOURED

i The goodwill existing between New Zealand and Britain, America, and Canada, experienced by Mr. Lan Mathieson, who recently visited those countries as the New Zealand Government official textile mission, 1 was emphasised in an address to manufacturers at a luncneon in the Farmers' Trading Co.'s board room, to-day. Mr. Mathieson, vice-president of the Manufacturers' Association, left for overseas last December to obtain, if possible an increase in New Zealand's quota of textile goods then set by Britain, America, Canada and India, and he told his audience today that, although the outlook was black at first, it changed considerably. He had been able to arrange a solid increase in the quotas of wool and cotton material which New Zealand was so short of, but it was made apparent at the outset by all he approached that anything done to increase supplies must not interfare with the war effort. How matters could change unexpectedly, he instanced by mentioning a case where a ship loaded with metals was side-tracked to another destination and the metal so delivered had to be paid for in cloth. This might have had an effect upon the supplies of cloth to the Dominion.

Low Percentage of Sinkings New Zealand, said Mr. Mathieson. was particularly favoured in regard to supplies from Britain and Canada, and was very fortunate in the low percentage of sinkings of ships on the way to this country. New Zealand manufactureres had a very serious responsibility in servicing the public in these difficult times, and it was an opportunity for textile manufacturers to show the people and the Government they could do the job and do it so well, that an established industry could be built up and handed to those who would follow on. Clothes rationing in England he found to be very severe, and New Zealand people Avere about 80 per cent better off in this respect. Since leaving England another cut had been imposed, which would mean New Zealand having an advantage of perhaps 100 per cent in clothes rationing over the people of England. The restrictions on textiles in one year had saved 250,000 tons of space to shipping at a time when it was most necessary. The quota for wool cloths in 1943 was double that of 1942, but was mainly in light cloths, the heavy cloths being probably less than onetenth of the whole quota. The quotas for cotton and rayon had increased 33 1-3 per cent and 121 per cent respectively on the quotas arranged prior to the mission going overseas.