TRADE WITH BRITAIN

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21285, 3 October 1934, Page 12

TRADE WITH BRITAIN

PREFERENCE OF THE DOMINION STATEMENT BY MK MASTERS [From Our Parliamentary Reporter.J WELLINGTON, October 2. In a statement issued to-day, the Minister for Industries and Commerce Cthe Hon. R. Masters), dealt with the trade of New Zealand with the United Kingdom and foreign countries, and also with the trading position of the United Kingdom and foreign nations. The Minister said that a good deal of criticism had been levelled at New Zealand because it was alleged that she was not treating Great Britain a* generously as she should in the matter of imports. This was absolutely incorrect. For the year ended December 31. 1933, the total imports of New Zealand were £21.451,382. made up as follows: From United Kingdom . . 10,839,803 From other British countries • • • ■ 5,153.691 From foreign countries .. 5,457,888 Total • ■ £21,451,352 Thus onlv £5,457,880 worth of goods was bought from foreign countries, r.nd this was made up largely of items which Britain could not supply, even if New Zealand gave her an absolutely free market. Items such as dried fruits, grain, sugar, wines, tobacco, furs, timber, oils, petrol, sulphur, manures, etc., were not produced by Britain, and New Zealand had to procure them elsewhere. Those items totalled £2,880,000, leaving a balance that New Zealand might have bought fiom the United Kingdom or some other part of the Empire of £2,577,000. Why did New Zealand not buy them from England? The answer was that New Zealand was willing and anxious to buy them from Empire sources and to encourage this had granted very substantial preferences. Supplier at Fault The fault was with the United Kingdom supplier, and not with New Zealand. Mr Masters quoted the following figure* showing various items imported into New Zealand during 1933: „ From. Rates All foreign of duty. British coun- Brit- Forimports. tries, ish. eign. £ £ P.C. P.C.

Hats, caps. & „ millinery 83,521 28,327 25 614 Apparel, „ , n.e.i. G22.543 136,840 275 61J Silk & artificial silk goods .. 280,264 306,943 3 183 Paints and varnishes 65,775 11,643 20 42 8 Measuring & testing appliances 23,137 9,325 3 30tS H a r dwarc & metal manufact u re s. n.e.i. .. 238,797 51,040 20 os£ E 1 e ctric lamps, n.e.i. 6.66 C 5.880 10 42* W i r eless sets mounted in cabinets 20.188 05,745 10 42i j Other wireless apparatus 91,646 84,196 3 30U E 1 ectrical goods . 307,263 54,446 3 30' i "We have given the British manufacturer preference of up to 35 per cent., and still the foix-fyner is able to take a considerable portion of the market. That is the producer's fault, not New Zealand's." said Mr Masters. Other Countries Further proof of New Zealand's value to the United Kingdom as a market was given by the Minister when he quoted figures to show the imports of various foreign countries from the United Kingdom, as compared with New Zealand's imports from that source, over a 10-year period from 1923 to 1932. "The fact is," said the Minister, "that New Zealand has taken more in the aggregate over the 10-year period than any other, except Germany, France, America, and Holland, all of which have vast populations in comparison with our million and a half. Many of these countries are our serious competitors on the English market, particularly in dairy produce; indeed, Britain has entered into trade agreements with them. Actually, New Zealand is a vastly better customer than arc our competitors, and leaving out altogether all question of sentiment the desire for fostering Empire trade. i lie fact that we are a loval off-shoot i)f the Mother Country—leaving that out of consideration, and dealing with the matter as a cold, solid business and trade proposition, New Zealand i«; worth a great deal more to Britain as a market than are those foreign countries which are flooding the United Kingdom with primary products, damping the home producer and the 1)0i mmions. and talking practically nothing | of Britain's manufactures in return. ] • Vcv Capita Imports I "Even taking the figures on a oer i capita basis, there is only one countrv j m the world that imports more goods I per head of population from the Unf- | ted Kingdom than does New Zealand I In 1933 the figures were:—

, ■ , ~ £ s. d. : Irish l>rce Slate ..072 S New Zealand ~ ..142 < Denmark .. ..354 : Australia .. , 344 ! .. .'. 00 5 ' Argentine .. .. 1 111 Finland ~ .. 011 s Netherlands .. .. 110 5 j "Britain mu?t bear these facts in' mind when she talks about quotas and levies, and her first corT-! sideration should be to tee that our foreign competitors buy British pro-' "nets m return for the market thev y.njoy or u they do not, then apply to tncm the quota or levy before inflict. "ccold.°V. BrUßsh , I ? om,nio " Sh actoids her manufacturers such n spcnclid market. T„ addition to the KM ss smS ■or her peoplr-. 1 ' ° ' c ' ir