OVERSEA FREIGHTS AND SHIPPING

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3199, 25 September 1917, Page 4

OVERSEA FREIGHTS AND SHIPPING

The further increase of outward freights from England from £6 to £10 a ton means a further substantial increase in the price of imported goods,, and must bo followed by an additional advance in the cost of .living. Before the war freights stood at a little over £2 a ton, so that they are now nearly five times greater than in pre-war times.- There is. only one redeeming feature in the situation, These added freight charges a-re not going to swell, the profits.of the big shipping firms, but the greater part of them, so far as they relate to British shipping, will go to the. Government of Britain and assist to meet the cost of the 'war. A most interesting and informative -official statement was issued early last month with respect to the position of vessels on the United Kingdom Shipping Register. This showed that before the war tho ocean-going vessels on the Kegistcr represented. a gross tonnage of between 17 and 18 million tons. At the date of the issuing of. the statement, inclusive of prizes, .the oceangoing shipping on the Register was a little over 15 million tons, of which 14 million tons were employed in Home service. Thus, the net war and other losses of British shipping up to the beginning of August of this year was Detween two and threo million tons. Of the 14 million tons of shipping employed on Home service, nearly one half—about 64 million tons—have been allocated entirely to the needs of the Navy, the Army, our Allies, and for the transport of troops from the Dominions overseas. Thus, only some seven million tons of shipping , is now availablo for ordinary trade purposes as against tho 17. millions in pre-war times. This,- of course, takes no account of neutral shipping. In July or August the situation was such that the British" Government, acting no' doubt on the advico of the Controller of Shipping, found it necessary, to take complete control of all British shipping. The reason for this step was stated to be to ensure tho employment of overy vessel in the manner and on the terras as to_ rate of freight most consistent with the national interest. The result was summarised a-s follows:

With tho exception of a few Vessels engaged in distant waters on work which is vital to British colonies, and of vessels chartered to France and Italy, tho British Government lias requisitioned for hire at Government rates about 97 per cent, of the oceansoins tramps on the United Kingdom Register. " All British liners have been requisitioned and/are being run for Govern-, mont account. The owners receive hire at Government rates, and tho profits derived from private freidit carried at market rates go to the Government, and not to the fhip. owner. ISverjr ocean-going voyago of British steamers is now directed by the Government, mho havo regard only, to the question of how they «an obtain essential imports from the nearest (source, and disregard both the interests of the shipowner and tho erport«r. . . Itanv trades built trp in distant waters and sustained by British industry have had to bn abandoned to neutral owners, who gladly seek employment for their vessels in areas immune from war rislc. Thn coastal traffic round tho shores of tho United Kfntrdom is lieinij .subjected to a ppnrchijn? review for the purpose (a) of withdrnwimr vessels which can br> utilised for ncoiin-poins work, and (l>) nf brinrinj about a limitation of rates wheiWer possible. The extreme steps forced on the British Government as indicated in this official statement serve to emphasise both the difficulty and the urgency of the shipping problem, and also throw somo .additional light (in tho failure to meet more fully the repeated requests of the Prime Minister of tho Dominion for tho necessary vessels to carry our produce overseas. So far as the ,

future is concerned the report does not give promise of any early improvement of a material kind. The diversion uf liners from long-dis-tance to short-distance trades, even ■at the cost of inflicting injury on many British export trades and on the overseas Dominions, is referred to as one of the sacrifices necessitated by the war; but there is no clear suggestion that there is any prospect of conditions in .this respect being bettered. It is implied, however, that by reason of the requisitioning by tho Government and the consequent elimination of competitive waste and the use of all available vessels to the fullest advantage better results all round will be achieved, and New Zealand may find some relief through this means.