Effects Of Lower Sugar Price

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30677, 17 February 1965, Page 1

Effects Of Lower Sugar Price

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, February 16. Cost reductions were becoming price reductions—in goods where sugar was a major cost factor —in “a reasonable and realistic way,” the Minister of Industries and Commerce (Mr Marshall) said today.

He was commenting on a recent statement by the president of the Federation of Labour (Mr T. E. Skinner). Mr Marshall said when the price of sugar was reduced from Is 3d per lb to lOd per lb, in December, he instructed the trade practices and prices division of his department to see the expected reductions did occur in prices of goods where sugar was a major cost factor. “The prices of biscuits, confectionary, jam. canned fruits, aerated waters, ice cream, cordials, cake, jellies and crystallised fruits, as well as castor and icing sugars have subsequently decreased in price,” he said. Mr Marshall said there were still some cases where no price reductions had been made.

In some of these hL department was still negotiating for price reductions; in others, no price increase had in fact been taken when the price of sugar rose last year. He said the reductions in the price of sugar took place too late in the year for the full effect to be shown in the 1964 price indices. >

Mr Marshall said the Government would continue to make every effort to ensure that the downward movement in the price of sugar was passed on to the consumer. Mr Marshall said a letter had been sent to manufacturers who used sugar in their production process asking them to reduce their prices to reflect the fall in sugar cost, taking into account the stocks of the dearer sugar they had on hand. Mr Marshall said some manufacturers by increased efficiency or great production had been able to give effect to the reduction in the price of sugar and also absorb the general wage increase and other cost increases they had to meet over the last year. Other manufacturers whose products had increased in price were passing on to the consumer only the increases in the cost of their other raw materials, wages, electricity, sea and rail freight charges, wrapping and printing supplies and had made a compensating allowance for the reduction in the price of sugar.