Businessmen Happy At Export Increase

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31915, 17 February 1969, Page 20

Businessmen Happy At Export Increase

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, Feb. 16. The chairman of directors of the Tasman Pulp and Paper Company, Ltd (Mr J. C. Fletcher) said he was “very happy” about the agreed increase of sl3m a year in New Zealand’s newsprint and forest products exports to Australia. The managing director of N.Z. Forest Products Company, Ltd (Mr R. H. Smythe) said he, too, was happy about the agreement Mr Smythe was confident that the Australian Minister for Trade (Mr McEwen) wanted to see New Zealand expand its trade in newsprint, pulp, paper, and boards. Most of the Increase will

be from a rise in newsprint exports. N.Z. Forest Products will not share in this newsprint increase, but Mr Smythe expects his company’s share of the Australian paper and boards, market to rise by about $1,500,000. Both Messrs Smythe and Fletcher believe there will be further expansions in the 19705. In 1968, Tasman Pulp and Paper’s sales totalled about s4om. Two-thirds of its newspaper production was sold in Australia, and about half its pulp production. Thus, a “very high” proportion of the company’s total output was exported, Mr Fletcher said. The company also had large sales to Japan.