INCREASED EXCHANGE RATES

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue 70, 19 September 1914, Page 3

INCREASED EXCHANGE RATES

♦ PROTEST BY A HARBOUR BOARD. (BT TBLEOBA?H.— ?R£SS ABSOCIATIOS.) NEW PLYMOUTH, 18th Sept. ■ At the meeting of the Harbour Board to-day, the chairman, in mentioning the amount paid by the board for remitting money to London recently, said that merchants and traders of, New Zealand had been advised to order as much as possible from England, instead of reducing^ orders, and to pay promptly. He pointed out that the banks were , making it hard for . this worthy object to be carried out, and went on to say that on the last remittance the board had made of money to London, the bank had raised the rate of exchange from £th pev cent, to 6-Bths, so it was evident that tho banks were taking advantage of the present trouble to put money into their pockets. Mr. Maxwell contended that while there might be reason for a slight increase in the rate of exchange, there was no justification for the rise of 500 per cent., which he characterised as extortionate. The secretary 1 stated , that on a previous remittance the exchange had been dB7 15s 6d, but the last had cost £46 12s 9d. Mr. Bellringer expressed the opinion that if all the institutions in the country adopted the same policy it would mean absolute ruin. It • was decided to call the attention of ''the Prime "Minister to the. action of the Bank of New Zealand in this matter.