EXPORT STATISTICS

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 230, 23 June 1921, Page 6

EXPORT STATISTICS

THE INJUSTICE TO WELLINGTON DISCUSSED BY HARBOUR BOARD The question of export statistics was before the Wellington Harbour Board again last night, when some correspondence on tho subject was read to members. The secretary of the board had written to the Government Statistician pointing out that in tho 1920 Year Book tho exports of certain districts defined by the Customs Department had been wrongly described as tho exports of ports. Wellington had 'been credited with merely a portion of the goods it actually handled. He asked that in future issues of tho Year Book the position should be made clear.

The Government Statistician, in reply, had agreed that the meaning of the official figures ought to lie made clear. -They represented the production of districts, not the actual shipments from ports. He would have the position made clear in the 1921 Year Book. The secretary of the board had written also to the Controller of Customs suggesting that an official table should bo prepare! showing the voliime and value of exports from each final port of shipment. The Controller had replied that the matter would receive consideration. Mr. G. Mitchel] said that the members of Parliament who had looked into the matter had found that Wellington was exporting worth of goods for which credit had not been given in the official statistics. One of the proposals made had been that the harbour boards should" compile statistics of imports and exports across their wharves. But he had found on investigation that the hoards were not in possession of the information required for tho preparation of correct statistics, and if they took the work in hand they would have to employ extra labour at considerable cost. The Customs Department, on the other hand, was in possession of all the information and could prepare official statistics showing the actual trade of tho various ports. Mr. C. M, Turrell said it would be quite simple in making out the clearances of ships to credic cargo to tho port at which it was loaded. Tho ships at.present were required to credit cargo to the special districts defined by the Customs Department, and this involved a great deal of extra work. It would be necessary, if the position was to be made clear, to have more than one return. The special districts had no real connection with the trade of tho ports.

Members of the board mentioned, in the course of. a brief discussion, that the port of Wanganui, for example, was being credited with the exports of districts fafft sent practically all their trade through Wellington. 'Rhe variation in the size of the districts as defined for statistical purposes made the figures useless for comparison as between ports, and yet uie table was presented in the Year Book in a comparative form.