THE TARIFF.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17295, 5 November 1921, Page 11

THE TARIFF.

LOCAL OPINIONS. WAREHOUSEMAN'S VIEWS. I ' TEXTILE GOODS AND TOBACCO, j ' i I ~ ~~~ i ■ X statement basal upon a cursory wuniination of the tariff changes ™s | A. Ore-hard, 0 f the Canterbury Cnnmbcr of Com Serce, who is also local manager ot S Harris, and Co. Ltd., a firm operating in lines affected by tr.nff revision. • . , ~ ~ , r „ nr j "j am rather surprised, said Mi urt chard, "that the Government did not ! increase the duties on textiles more i than they have done. In fact, most / people were expecting such increases, r and it is a peasant surprise to find tnat textiles have been let off very lightly indeed. Cotton niece goods defined to be cut up are now subject to a SO per cent duty. This refers to such goods as • handkerchiefs, serviettes, quilts, towels, and so forth. Apartfrom those lines,'however, tho duty is practically unchanged except, of course, that foreign Roods have to pay a larger preferential duty- The price of silk piece , goods will, as from June Ist, bo reduced as the result of the tariff changes. That will be a considerable help to the householder in general, as there is a lot of silk used in the manufacture ot rbthin". As a matter of fact the increases do not affect the retail drapers very much at all, and from tho drapery point of view the new tariff is a working-man's tariff. "As far as boots and shoes are concerned I do not think personally that any harm will result from the new duties. If people want to wear foreign boots it means that they will have to pay 12s Gd per pair more for them. That will encourage the sale of locally iatde boots which are of equal quality to the imported and will cost less, not beinc subject to the new duties. "With regard to cigarette tobacco, I think the tobacconists will find themselves in a difficult position, for the 6s 6d advance in the duty practically means the pre-war duty paid > price. It will mean eventually that X more made \xj> cigarettes will bo sold, % for made up cigarettes are not affected ! - at all. The proportion of fine-Cut to ■;\ the total quantity of tobacco 80ld t is, v however, only small, and the other lines ■ fare so little affected as not to make :■ much difference in the sales. I am inclined to think that the time is not far •"■■ dktant when there will be a drop in '■'], ths f .o.b. price of tobacco, and that the ■\ increased duty will be off-set by the extent of that reduction. That downi: \ ward movement should take place with- |\ in twelve months' time, but in the ; meantime prices win advance to the Bitent of the now duties. The extra >.'.-> duty will have to be passed on pending the time when the actual cost of the <\ ib reduced. "I think the Government might rea- ,. sonably have increased the primage ' : duty to at least 5 per cent., which \ would have been of material help in revenue production, and, nobody would ; have objected to it. The Government, ' in my opinion, has missed a golden opj portunity here for securing additional revenue. The primage of course could always he adjusted and reduced from tune to time as required, but at the present moment' it could very well have been increased." }■;■ , Mr Bagrie, of.Tait, Bagrie., Co., Ltd., j a firm largely interested in tobneco im- | r portations, said it was gratifying to |t note that the tariff was unaltered in f %; respect of cigars and " high grade |t ■ cigarettes. The duty on cigars had prem viously been increas&d front 7s to 12s, f>. '!: and it was only eauitable that no fur- £:}■ ther increase should be made on those |, lines until other lines had been inm creased. In any event, the imposition pol further taxation on.cigan would kill p tsat branch .of trade altogether. The |»• pebble, who used the. fine cut tobacco H *ery Tjfell pny the increased duty g> for thelevy on that line had remained Riimohanged jfor many vears, whereas || s .Virt**r 1»«** ? were charged with gubstanttfe':::THE.: BEER DUTY: .: ms : £:-< !"■ . ■ ■ ■ ■ |tM|J; JUtBWBBSVPOSmON. ...proposed'.; increase in the excise to Tl}d a gallon haa ccme as a to tlhe brewers. Managers |§|i^V;prtprieto*s-in that trade held a meetingyesterdayafter|p|iqonitd consider the position. The of one of the breweries said "We are very *kn* the- Government jjut »uoh a heavy impost on beer, |ft(£wlnWw looked on as the working man's IflTMarary in alqohol. While we propose onr customers s tho benefit of' buy- •&£%>; at the' old price ail accumulated are not heavy—after |£ ;t '*My are-'Bone we will in all probability tho question of increasing the pt : -;,,sflbtosale price." He pointed out .that irmth* tariff proposals the excise wae inper cent. At piesent it per gallon, which worked out at hogshead, and the pre-war impost The breweries will jgfejlja compelled to work on old stocks con-' ; i-.wiotftd for in an expensive market, and >ii| : .<sWapplies of barley in hand will not lN3Sr**« U P tui aoout M* months after p£l|« !stext crop comes in. In addition to §p*wil<ittoey; are bound down to a contract IfpPJ ripchasing hops till 1923 at a price li-Mfc ear w^en *here was a world and tlhe growers would if then Bhjppod their stuff away for It WW*? l " prices, ranging up to 20 per prw New Zealand rates, if the. |fe*gffi»nipn brewers did not engage in tho. jiyvWended contract for the purchase of £%&s!•,\- 'ootplit.' The lowering price of 2 n » possible reduction in wages ' oug * a y Bnort of maJj i n £ t extra cost of nroduetion on acV*!'** 16 excise d*uty of Hid & R|P : PRICE OF DRINKS. ■ -}M PEOBABLE MEASUSINO OP ...•|£»r ' v - -spjaEtrrs.' v;:;:pK' ! ' . ; ~k- 1 * secretary of the Canfe -S^*y''licensed Victualfers' Aasociasi W a > the'course of a statement to IE ftireporter regarding the increased Cus:.duties on beer and spirits, said the epnunittee of the Association ; Ji-',f?» iMxi matter under consideration, ■/!■;!,■ and. were reviewing the enormous in■J,f Sf* B^ 9 a business point of view. tw increase in price, he said, clearly jN'°*d. °f any profits beinjj made at I'IS-'W 6 P?*»nt ruling retail rates, and it iSS no * boasidered poos.ble to carry on if;- ?|thout handing on the increase to the V,r.'4gftsumer. p, ;#lt U regrettable that jt has to be Mr Peverill added, "but at fe-.PM'wit it seema.that w« will be oomto do so j unless the measure is

introduced for the sale of all spirits, and they be treated as an ordinary saleable commodity on the same lines as other business houses. That may avoid an increase; but there is no doubt that 18s per gallon additional duty on spirits is far beyond anything anticipated in trade circles. Before anything definite is decided upon, a general meeting of members will be called, and that is all the information I can give you at this stage." "Nothing will be done until after the holidays," said an hotclkeeper to a "Press" reporter, conversing with regard to the r-r-ice ot spirits. "The hotclkcepers will be philanthropists for the week, and stand the loss."'he added. The new duty, he pointed out, would, in a'-l probabi.ity, result in the measure system beinc adopted, as wy. the case in the o'd 'Country, and also in Au-tralia, a.s pub'icnns pcnernlly were averse from inoeasina: the price of a "nip" to Is. The retail price of whi-.ky would a 1 so piobab'v !h> fixed at Us 0:1. or log, the hew tariff really Icavina: no alternative to such a step. Tt is understood that, in one In rue hotel at least, it is intended shortly, provided the measure .•.•ystcm is not adopted, to e'>arjre If- for a "nip" of whi-ky, and 15s per bottle. "The principal" effect of the new tariff.' - wi'd a. ir-?rchant. "provided it is carried in the form published, will be to indu-e people to drink move light wines and beer, ns spirits will be placed beyond ir.anv of them." A hi" drop, he continued, could be. shortly, in the consumption of spirits. 'Wlii'e a certain quantity had been takenooru r of bond in anticipntion of increased duty, merchants had been taken by surprise at the amount of the increase. While the stocks they had on hand lasted, no increase, would be made to retailers but as scon as rev/ stocks were cleared from bond, the extra duty, which amounted to somethirf* like 2s a bott'e. would have to bo passed on. It had not been expected that the new duty would Amount to 3!K but owinj? to it reaching 3Gs, a reduction of the d : istil'ing costs at H'-me would be welcome news. It was expected that such a reduction would take place in August, when a number of lines would be effected, and by which time the nost-war distillations will have reached a satisfactory export state of maturity. CIGARETTES AND TOBACCO. A leading retail tobacconist stated that the new tariff would undoubtedly have an ndverso effect on the sale of loose tobacco, as tho increased prices ■ which must be charged would make it hardly worth while for a smoker to make it up into cig.'iettcs. In some instances, however,'a number woaid stiil prefer to niaiw* their own cigai-i-ttes, because- of a liirmg they had lor a. certain brar.l of tobacco. On the other hand, it was expected that as the sale of cigart-tte tobacco decreased that of cigarettes would increase. Going into the question of tho alteration of prices of such tobacco, ho stated that where a packet containing about |oz was now sold for lid, the new price, which Would probably be charged would be about Is 4d or Is sd, a packet containing ljoz toeing retailed for just about double that price. At the prosent time there was a line of cigarettes being sold at a figure which was lower than that at which a smoker could himself make cigarettes. Two-ounce plug tobacco, said the tobacconist, would probably be increased by a penny an ounce. However, the question of new prices would be considered 'shortly by the Prices Committees of the Tobacconists' Association. While the increased duty would not affect to any great extent those, tobacconists holding large stocks at present, it would prove a serious matter to those whose stocks were small, as, for instanco. some suburban tobacconists. Recently, however, there had been n shortage of several lines of tobacco, and, of course, tobacconists would have to pay the new prices for these when they came to hand. : Tobacconists generally uid not look on increases with favour, because as a rulo they lost a small percentage every time such was made, and as a tobacconist's business was not as lucrative as some others, this wqb a serious matter for them. "If the duties mentioned are imposed," said the malinger of a wholesale establishment, speaking of to- j bncco and cigarettes, tho Government j in some instances will be exceeding the safe point, as it wilj mean that con-1 sumption will decrease, particularly so far as cut cigarette tobacco is concern- | ed, which, of course, is tho line most j affected. Thousands of people prefer to make up their own cigarettes to buy* .j •ins the made-up variety, and the pro- i posed increase will mean that a large riumbor of these people will in future give up purchasing tobacco. The duty on cigarettes, ho pointed out, was 25s 6d per thousand, equal to 10s2d per lb, and the now duty would raise that on oignretto tobacco to 10s. thus bringing both into lino. He thought that some smokers would in consequence change the brand of cigarettes th;-y were in the habit of smoking in favour of a cheaper makv; others again, after abstaining fori a period, would eventually accept the new conditions. There was n chance that in thus raising the duty on cigarette tobacco, the Government was doing so in a protectivej sense, ns cigarettes were how being made in the Dominion, and would Cost! the'same as a smoker could nudothom ! up himself at tho new rate. He was | surprised at tho attitude of the Government in touching plug tobaccos, which, after allj was the poor mnn'B smoke, and the cost of which was already quite high enough. The change would involve a rearrangement , of prices, as neither merchants nor tobacconists could be expected to lay out money unless in bo doing they got a fair return for it. DUTY, ON MOTOR-CARS. POSITION OF DfIPOBTEBS. 1 It is rather soon as yet to give a definite consensus of opinion of those ! engaged in the motor trade as to how the new tariiT is going to affect business. A. number of representative motor-car importers were interviewed by a reporter from "The Press" yesteiday, and it was found that, while some were prepared to take a pessimistic view of the position and forecast a total collapse of business, others were content to say little for publication, but gave* the impression tnat they had expected a much heavier tariff on foreign cars. A commercial man who is closely in touch witli the trade throughout iSew Zealand pointed out that British manufacturers had not benefited greatly by the new tariff. Previously the duty was "ten and ten"—ten per cent., on British cars with an additional ten per cent on foreign makes. Under those conditions the British makers had starved the last two or three years, for, j what with industrial tioubles, the high I cost of labour and materials, etc., they I could not compete with the Americans, i Now the tariff had been increased to lo per cent, against British makes—in spite of the fact that they could not capture the overseas trade at 10. per cent.—while the tariff on American makes had been put up to 25 per cent., which meant that Britain still had an advantage of only 10 per cent, over America. It was considered in (some quarters, said the" speaker, that the increase should have been pro rata. It was pointed out that as things stood the Dominion dealeis had no option but to confine their agencies to American cars, in view of the relative value end prices, and eo long as Britain had no assistance through the tariff there was

no likelihood, under present conditions at Home, of making any advance m tu< Dominion's trade.

I An importer who took a serious view i of the position from the Dominion trade standpoint, said that it all depended on what the tariff was to be calculated on —the present conversion rate or at par. At present the conversion rate of American exchange was 3.2 Q. and par was 4.86. If the dutv were assessed on the conversion rate, instead of on the par rate as in the past, it would Bean a heavy rise in duty over and above the present preferential tariff of 10 per cent. As an instance the speaker said that £IOO worth of dutiable goeds assessed at par would pay £2O lis od ad valorem; ten per cent, on that would be £2 Is and the ten per cent, preferential would bring it up to £4 2s At the conversion rate the cost would be £25 12s 9d, and "ten and ten" on that would be approximately £5 2s, a difference of 25 per cent. The speaker said that it' the tariff was ba?ed on the conversion rate the Government was "oin" to penalise traders in American and' French cars. If par was taken as the basis. America would get a big in " as France, with its deprecated exchange, would suffer unduly. The "tneral impression was, he continued, that on account of the depreciation of the franc France could export more* ! cheaply than England, but that was not I the'true position, as France had to import an enormous quantity of raw material, with the franc which was worth only half of "ts original value in England, and then re-export, 'lhe French were thus labouring under a big disadvantage, without th'e extra tariff. An answer to some of the above arguments was obtained from the Customs Office, where it was found that tho tariff on American rars was to be based on par until December 31st, and after that date it vnrr'n be fixed on the rate of exchange at the time of shipment. .Special provision was also made for fixing the tariff at a standard where imports arrived from countries whose currency had depreciated below par. Tlie question was asked in several quarters yesterday as to what was meant bv the provisions made for intermediate" tariff, as it was understood that New Zealand had no reciprocal agreements with other countries. Enquiries from the Customs Office elicited the information that the only re-iprocal agreement in existence at present was with South Africa and Australia and that only leferred to a few specified articles, but tho "intermediate" provision was made in yiew of future agreements. It is understood that something on those lines is contemplated by the Government. IMPORTED BOOTS. I Representatives of local boot manuI facturers, when approached yesterday, were not prepared to make a statement te«arding the new tariff, as tfiey were not sure of the position, and were awaiting an official interpretation of certain provisions.' It was understood that it. was the tariff on Australian boots about which tihe manufacturers wore chiefly concerned. Several retailers who were questioned also declined to make a statement at present. The public will be able to secure copies of the tariff resolutions at the Custom House to-day. THE FRUIT TRADE. ! . ! STEONG PEC-TEST AGAINST OTTY. A protest against the increased duty on bananas, oranges, and lemons was forwarded to the Prime Minister by the Fruit Retailers' Association yesterday afternoon. The president (3lr J.Cowell) tclegraphea to Mr Mas&ey, stat'lng'tWt the Association stringiy protested against tho imposition of Id per lb duty on bananas and oranges, and the 100 per cent, increase on the duty on lemons. In view of the price ot these fruits,'the duty was considered ridiculous. . (m ' Speaking to a representative of The Press" last night, Mr Cowell said that three oranges, which represented about a lb weight, wer© retailed at Is, a price out of the reach of many case of oranges averaged about 8010*. and tho duty on that would be 4s 2d. In addition, there was freight and cartage to be added, whioh would increase the charges on a case of oranges by another Is. Thus, Mere was about as 2d to be added to the purchase price. The new dutv would also mean a substantial addition to thb price oil bananas, which run from 70 to wlb a Cfl«9. , . Mr G. T>. Macfarlano, fruit auctioneer, said that tho new duty simply meant that many fruiterers would have to give up business. The landed cost or bananas in Christchurch would be increased to 82s to 3Sa a case under the new soale, for it frequently happened' that there was no boot to oonneet with tha Island boat at Auckland. The importers could not expect to get their money back under the conditions. H« had taken steps that day to cancel a shipment of Queensland bananas, and he had cut down his order for oranges to a minimum. He thought it particularly unfair that the fruit importers had not been consulted before the tariff had been introduced. Those people wflio had shipments on the Tofua, which was arriving on Sunday with 20,000 cases, would have £6OOO extra to poy for duty. If the measure had been brought in to benefit tilie Cook Islands, it would only achieve that result at the expense of tho publio of New Zealand, and, moreover, the Cook/Islands could not hope to snpnly New' Zealand's requirements. The' falling-off in tho fruit trade which must result, would have ai far-reaching effect, for tihe shipping companies could not afford to maintain the Islands' service if insufficient freight was offered from the other end, and thi,i would affect the Auckland firms which did a large trade with the Islands. In Mr Macfarlane's opinion tho new duty would kill trade in Aew Zealand and place fruit beyond tlhe roach of the average family. He had already telegraphed to Auckland and Welj lington to ascertain what the traders there proposed doing in the matter.

THE POSTED COPIES.

NO CHANCE OP LEAKAGE

(SPKOUI. TO "THK PKBSS.") AVELLIXGTON, November 4

"Had an/ of the copies of the tariff proposals posted to officials in various parts of the country before the introduction of. the "proposals in the House gone astray in the post?" enquired the Leader of the Opposition (Mr T. M. Wilford) to-day. A private firm, fortunate enough to get a copy in time, might, said Mr Wilford, have removed £50,000 worth of whisky from bond and caused the country a loss out of all proportion to the saving effected by posting the copies instead of telegraphing them. The Postmaster-General assured the member that all precautions had been taken, and that ne had heard of no copy being lost. The documents had been checked out and checked in, and there was a perfect record of their transmission. He remembered an instance in which an important paper had gone astray. It had been very quickly overtaken.

TRADE WITHIN THE EMPIRE.

i ME HAEOLD BEAUCHAMP'S | VIEWS. (SPECIAL TO ''THE PMSS.") WELLINGTON, November 4. So fas as can.be jud S ed at this stage the now tariff is very generally approved, except, of course, in cases whore indivdual commercial, and especially manufacturing interests are concorned. The. public take tho increased duties on luxuries philosophically, for ft is realised by everyone now that increased revenue is needed if tho National accounts are to show a satisfactory result. Mr Harold Boauohamp, the chairman of tho Bank of New Zealand, said tho encouragement of reciprocal trade within the Empire was a step m the right direction. "It. is," he repeated, "a step in tho right diretion, as it is most desirable for us to expand our overseas, trade by every means in our power, more particularly with respect to the disposal of our primary products. It gives us tho right to differentiate against anv country that is not disposed to accord fair and equitable treatment to us. At the present time we feel we have a grievance against America, whore s uch excessively high duties have recontlv been imposed on all descriptions of produce which that country had boon importing from New Zealand. This aonlies specially to wool, and to a leaser "extent to butter and frozen meat. We were rather hopeful that under the Democratic tariff we-should HoortCT or kiter have found a very large market in the United States for considerable quantities of our produce, but the position has been reversed. "As far as tho tariff generally is concerned, I-should say that it has been •introduced upon the lines anticipated bv the commercial community as a whole. It was generally recognised that for some years past there has been too great a burden of taxation inflicted upon the class that contributes income and land tax.. In that connexion there is a very interesting table published in the 'New Zealand Trade Review and Prices Current,' 0 f October 28th, which shows that of the total income tax collected for tho period ended March 31st last, no less team £4,970,(347 was mm* by public comparies out of tho total collected, £8,034,281, equal to 62 per cent of the whole. For manv years the income tax has been steaoily increasing, and tho Customs tax has been declining, so that in view of the present conditions, it seems perfectly equitable that thoso who do not contribute income tax should be asked to nay a somewhat hiphor rat© of taxation through the Customs. It is just possililo that tho very high duties on some lines may mean decreased consumption, but that cannot bo regarded as an unmixed evil, as it mil be forcing more or less a policy of economy on the. community, which to-day is being strongly advocated by thoso in power. "In regard to the finances of the Dominion as a whole, whilst it is extremely gratifying to see the position which has bran placed before the commumity by the Minister of Finance, it must lie remembered that the revenue collected for the financial year ended March 31st last should not be regarded as the amount of income that will be available during the ensuing twelve months. The fact, however, is not lost sight of bv the Minister of Finance, and ho ia 'Budgeting' accordingly. Of course the real drop in .income tax and land tax will not be relieved in the case of the formar until the early part of 1923, and in the onse of the latter until towards the end of 1922. when both classes a.re collected. We can only hope, therefore, that in the meantime there will be a substantial improvement in value in our primary produots, which will assist us in meeting our engagements." Encouragement to British Trade. Mr E. W. Dalton, the British Commissioner in New Zealand, said it was obvious that the tariff as proposed would have an important effect upon the development of British trade with New Zealand. Preference in a number of items had been extended, and some items which were not previously in the list had now been included. It was difficult, however, to know exactly what effect the tariff might have until it was known how far tho lnformtidinte tariff might be substituted tho general tariff as a, result of reciprocity negotiations, for which it was presumably The soft goods and metal Mnachinory trades were _ the most important sections of British trade with New Zealand, and the extension of preference in some important linas in thoso classes would undoubtedly be valuable. "Speaking generally," said Mr Dalton. "it is very encouraging to note the strong sentiment which provails in this country towards British trade. This senthwwt is carried into praotioo in the tariff proposals now brought forward, and I am sure that manufacturers in 'the United Kingdom will greatly appreciate the attitude which is biing shown both by th« New Zealand Government and the public." | SOUTH ISLAND IMPORTERS AT DISADVANTAGE. (special to "the pbess.") DUNEDIN, November 4. The new tariff proposals apparently provide that everything cleared at tho Customs after the 3rd inst. will be liable to the new tariff. It has been pointed out locally that this places importers in the South Island at a disadvantage in comparison with those of the North, since practically all the overseas boaps make Auckland or Wellington their first port "of call. It is urged by local merchants that for all goods imported where the vessel arrived in *New Zealand before the 3rd inst., the rate of duty should be the old one, which, it is stated, was the practice followed when the tariff, was revised before. IMPERIAL PREFERENCE. STATEMENT IN HOUSE OF COMMONS. (3y Cable—Press Association—Copyright.) iA.'Jattaiiaa atd Liable AsaociationJ LONDON, November 3. The resolution carried at the Imperial War Conference .in London in 1917 favouring spooiol treatment facilities by each part of the Empire to producers and manufacturers in other parts, was quoted in the House of Commons by Sir Philip Lloyd Grame, Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade, in reply to Mr Alfred Davies (Co.-Unionist, Lincoln), who asked whether the Dominions were systematically encouraged to give preference to British goods in contracts. Sir Philip Lloyd-Graeme said that there was ample evidence that British industries , had benefited by the preference accorded by the Dominions. LARGE JUICY LEMONS. From Italy's choicest groves are used to make Price's Lemon Fruit Syrup Essence. One small bottle makes gallons of delicious, thirst-quenching Lemon Syrup. Easy to make, and you j have a wholesome and most economical, summer cordial. Is 6d all stores, but j be sure to ask for Price's. -~®