Currency report

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33520, 29 April 1974, Page 17

Currency report

The United States dollar!I contiued its downward slide!; on foreign exchange markets i! last week, reaching its lowest ’ point since November, when [ I its trade-weighted average de-:; preciation against 14 other I currencies widened to 8.2 peril cent according to the weekly ■’ foreign exchange report from ] the Bank of New South 1 ] Wales. The trend has to a large; l extent been caused by specu- [ J lation that the United States trade deficit for March would [; total $5OO million, and that ; domestic inflation over the ; [ second quarter would run at ; the same annual rate as for , the first — 10.8 per cent. In addition the New York - Federal Reserve moved its - discount rate up \ per cent - to 8 per cent the highest on i record. The German mark hit a ! ’ new six-month “high” against [’ the dollar, against a back- ’ ground of trade surplus and[‘ (revaluation rumours. [. Sterling also had a good;' [week against the dollar, but;, lost ground against several! leading continental curren-i cies as its trade-weighted [ average depreciation nar-1 rowed only slightly to 17.15 per cent from last week’s i 17.20 per cent. Gold fell $2.75 to $171.50 [ an ounce; continuing Com- ( mon Market talks on official transactions in gold was an unsettling factor. Latest Eurodollar offer rates were: one and three I months 11| per cent; six! months 11 5/16 per cent; one] year 10 3/8 per cent. ! I Interim div. increased / The directors of Consoli-!/ dated Plastics Industries, Ltd. i ? have declared a further ; c interim dividend of 6c a share j (6 per cent) payable on May D 3. and will accept transfers n [up to midday on that date.{j ‘The company’s previous interim payment, made on Dec-; ;ember 3, was 4c a share. The;/ [total dividend payment lastp [year was 10 per cent. Conversion approved Ordinary and preference ■shareholders in D. McL. Wal-D lace, Ltd, have approved the > scheme under which prefer- ' ence shareholders will be able to exchange their holdings for ordinary shares. Preference shareholders may subscribe for four 50c new ordinary shares for each 200 c preference share held with a premium payment of 296 c cash. 1 Profit, div. higher Beneficial Finance Corpora- ! e tion, Ltd, has again increased its dividend rate after net ; E profit rose 57.9 per cent to a record $2.23m in the year to March 31. The dividend has been raised from 12.5 per F cent to 13.5 per cent with an increased final of 7 per cent. f The biggest, beneficiary of the higher payment is the Bank of Tokyo which holds a 20 per cent equity in Beneficial t Finance.