THE ORIENT COMPANY.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 17985, 31 January 1924, Page 13

THE ORIENT COMPANY.

i AUSTRALIAN TRADE. ; i.rsci! o:.- or-.-; ccs.r.z^-:-Dz:~.-LONDON. IX-cc-rcicr -'N i bir Kenneth Anderson a bunse^i* 0 ; and interesting review of the. pa-' 4 - :-" car " "coniin- of 1u .., Orient Steam i;io ° Company at After providing fcr de-iroeiatior. and cc "' tirsenc-cp, the profit on" the ycir'd •'•o--; for 1322. The balancTToVward -as by .C 22,,.51. 7i,~ nc i debit in co::r;c.-don v /' h debentures was rr-he.r by l"-'"~- ''"'"' liicu 3 h tho interest charqo had declined iol-!o:>-ic S (ho reduction in "tho debenture debt, last year's account benefited b ; - an lar S o credit for discount on redtrnr.lior.a durin? that -ear. The disposable balance vas thus i-0.J2.533, compared v,ith i317,6i1. Of this the preferred dividend rill absorD i'M,CO2, leaving i-J27,3i-y, out c! vhk-h :i dividend tfj S recommended of 12; per cent., free of income-tax; also that iI'DO.MO bo transferred to jreric-al rc-xrvo acc/>ur:! and i - -J3,000 to ur.der'vritin- i«oun< tb- balance ot .'.-ri.BCO being earned forward l; nost year. No special significance attached !o tho increase of GOmo i. - 13,0C0 u r d"r freight and passage money, which was raerch° syruptomatic of a rather lar ? cr volume of advancn bookings. Tho growth of JCt>S.IO2 in undcramounts that had been set aside for prcuiia. during the year o'.-cr the claims the company had to meet, together v. ith the appropriated f ronj the balanc of thin years profits. Repair and renewal account abo was higher by iSO.OOO. Having regard to lh° larger size and higher values of steamers building or to be built, tho directors! held it to be very necessary to (strengthen -belli tbeso accounts. Tho general reserve, at £700,000, reflected the addition of XIOO,OOO. On tho assets Bide, tbo book valuo of fleet, etc., showed a, difference of £215,376, mado up on tho one hand of payments on account cf new ete-n-mera and. growth of investments and on the other hand of deductions for depreciation of fleet, plant, etc., and the amount realised for tho Orontos, eoid during tho year.

The chairman pointed out how, in opilo of an upward movement in tho prices of stores oinco June, thcro had been a fairly wclldistributed reduction in tho average expenses of each voyage which, unfortunalclv, had been countered by a, decline iu revenue affecting every section. The volume of outward cargo hud shown an improvement during the past 18 months, but tho total number of dispatches of all tho hues engaged in tho Australian trado reinaincd far in excess of its requirements. In tho hoincwarrd trado the story was ono of lesß cargo' carried and at lower raUa, which could scarcely bo called a happy ono. I However, with the closing of tho 13 months a new chapter on cargo had op.nod, and he did not attempt to predict bow it would run. In passenger trifHc, the first salocn numbers had been fairly satisfactory, but tho second Ealoou exhibited a noUccablo falling off, and tho third-class a complete absence of elasticity. "Value of Migration, Whatever tho mcasuro of success attending tho Imperial Conference in other 10gards, there land not emerged from its deliberations any echemo winch assured in tho near future a marked quickening in tho flow of migration. This was a great sourco of disappointment. Quito apart from any influence which such a scheino would havo upon tho fufruro fortunes of Australia, with which the fortunes of tbjs company were bound up, tho rapid growth oi population in that country presented a problem which overshadowed, if it did not comprehend, all others. Eveu if thttro wcro no unemployment to-day there would, failing a continuous and corresponding growth in their trade—of which there was 6ca,nt enough prospect—be unemployment to-morrow with its corollary of want or tho lowering of tho everago standard of life, Migration, though it could provide a complete remedy, might provide a material alleviation, by enabling thoso who wero perforce an obligation at homo to become an asset as customers in other parts of tho Empire. 0110 Class. Passenger rates in every class had been substantially reduced dutring tho year, and it was possibly a- conecquenco o" those reductions that eomo increased, movement of first-cias3 traffic began to bo perceptible They had lately given consideration to tho design of their two now steamers and had decided to carry out a change of policy long contemplated by consolidating tho entire ealoon accommodation into ono iirat-olass. The resulting economy in organisation and space, combined with a. wider range of fwren, would, enable them to extend a higher standard of comfort without incrrased cost, The entire fleet would eventually conform to that change.

Thoyhad, within tho last month, Gponlaneously and without. asking for an increase Of subsidy, accelerated their ocean section of tho Australian mail transit both outward and homeward. Tho Eervico they gavo was now in point of time the same as it had been befctro tho war, if allowance vrcro mado for tho substitution of Toulon for Taranto and FiemswtJe for Adelaide oa tho porta of mail embarkation. With regard to their two now ships, tho delivery of which hod been delayed by tho boilcrmakera' atriko, their Size was snoh that Tilbury would at present bo unablo to accommodate them.

Tho Port of London Authority, however, had prepared plana for now wet and dry docks, locks and entrances at Tilbury for the accommodation of the new ships. Tho improvements projected there, combined with tho now landing stage, would, mako London an adequate passenger port, but ita geographical disadvantages, for which thero was no' remedy, tendered it doubly imperative that it shotxli? in other regards offer facilities equal to thoao afforded by othor United Kingdom porta. Quick despatch in the turn-round was, for obvious reasons of economy, important, and important juofc in proportion to tho size and v-aluo of tho shipa omployed-

Bcport of Imperial Shipping Committee. There had. lately appeared a rcporT"uy'sSo Imperial Shipping Committee, upon tho cconomia ei:o and speed of vessels in tho Australian trade, and upon the subsidies neccacary to maintain speeds in cscesa of such economic Bpecd. Tint document, besides being of great general interest, had a peculiarly intimate bearing on tho business of tho company. Whilo confirming tho view that a. mjiil service involved a post incommensurate with tho advantages accruing, it foreshadowed the possibility of securing tho desired acceleration by means of an air mail between Great Britain and Egypt. Tho committee's recommendations suggested a upon which tho Government lino could participate in the trade, whilo tho Contorenco lines could acquiesce without sacrificing essential safeguards. Another report had been issued on tho deferred robato system. It also was of general interest as finally (tho chairman trusted) disposing of an issue around which, controversy had intermittently raged during tho past twenty years or moro. The report wus of peculiar interest to all engaged *in the Australian trade, DecaUEo its recommendations suggested a basis on which the Commonwealth Government Line—now under reorganised management, renamed the Australian Commonwealth Lino—could, without derogating in any way from, tho trading principles sanctioned by their Government, fully participate in tho trade, whilst tlio Conference Linos could acquicsco in tber participation without sacri6cing safeguard's which experience had proved essential for tho maintenance of regular linc3 and of stable freights. The Conference Linen were prompt to act on those recommendations, and the relations between the two parties were now, to quoto tho words of fhe report, "relations of amicable concurrence." Competition between them was, and would remain, oi the chaiaotor, but by the removal ut ii. cause 01 scriouil Itluiion .'skjpperi and »ltJ£e v/cro meantime delivered Irom. an ever-present threat of disturbances iu thu uado ruinous t-j all inlercbU alike Britisli Empire Esliibition. In times tiko tlie present it v. s» m the lujl dctjrcu hasa:duU-i to mike any ol tho luture, but, so i:ir sls the immediate future was concerned, ttitj occurrence ot tho 'British Empire Exhibition should givo a. coaaxlcrablo stimulus to the passenger traffic tliis next year. Ho only hoped that it v/ou'd not bo balanced by a reaction in 19-S-Financially, they were in a etrong petition, and UlO cbaructcr of tho new bhipb boiag built was an earnest 01 tho corapaojy's intcaiiou not to etand still. Usy the time they v-tro in the water, and possibly before, they might have a clearer vision of what further building ppcgracirflo was called for. Tho company bad tho resources necessary to meet tho requirement? of their trade, and had cury intention of tioixur eo to the full. Ilia lion. Kenneth Hack ay seconded tho motion for tho adoption of tho report and amounts, and it was uninir"cuJy approved*