Ship’s cargo disappoints

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33493, 26 March 1974, Page 1

Ship’s cargo disappoints

Although there was some improvement in the Coastal Trader’s inward

Lyttelton loading from Auckland yesterday, her outward loading—the one Canterbury merchants had emphasised • was vital—was again disappointing.

The Coastal Trader discharged 44 containers, 33 vehicles, one excavator, and 500 tons of packaged galvanised iron from Auckland, which filled about half her

cargo space. Her outward loading for Auckland comprised only 17 containers, one refrigerated container, 14 packs of plywobd, and 15 vehicles. The Coastal Trader will call next at Dunedin where the north-bound cargo is also expected to be light. ■ It was a great disappointment, in view of the complaints regarding the withdrawal of the Wanaka last year, that the Coastal Trader had only a quarter of her cargo space full leaving Lyttelton last evening, said a spokesman for the Union Steam Ship Company. There was never much

problem about south-bound cargo from Auckland, but here was a glaring example of valuable north-bound cargo space not used, he said. This indicated poor support from Canterbury merchants. Since the Wanaka was withdrawn in August, manu-

facturers had been forced to use alternative means of transport, said the director of the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association (Mr I. D. Howell) last evening. It would take a few months for manufacturers to change back to using sea transport, said Mr Howell. The shipping rates and the services offered had to be publicised more, and the association intended distributing a newsletter urging manufacturers to use the service. Mr Howell said he was confident manufacturers using rail , transport would return to using the shipping service.