EXCESS IMPORTS THIS YEAR

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28552, 3 April 1958, Page 7

EXCESS IMPORTS THIS YEAR

Effects Of Transfer

To 1959 Quotas

(New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, April 2. There was reason to hope that the Government would not enforce its decision to charge excess licences for bona fide orders, placed last year, to 1959 import allocations, Mr G. Jackson, president of the Bureau of Importers, told Auckland importers today. Mr Jackson said the enforcement of this decision would lead to severe hardship and unemployment in the importing trade. Auckland members of the bureau met to hear a report from a delegation which met the Minister of Customs (Mr Boord) and the Governor of the Reserve Bank (Mr E C. Fussell) in Wellington last week.

Mr Jackson said another point concerning excess licences was that although licences were being granted, the Reserve Bank was withholding payment of overseas funds for excess goods. This meant that importers could not take delivery of the goods and were being forced to pay penal wharf storage rates as well as interest. He advised importers to ask their overseas principals to release the documents for these goods, pending allocation of overseas funds by the Reserve Bank.

“If these funds were granted," he said, “as the Reserve Bank says they will be, the apparent improvement in our sterling balances in recent months would be shown to be illusory.”