WORLD PRICES

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 125, 29 May 1930, Page 12

WORLD PRICES

• TENDING DOWNWARDS

"THE STATIST'S" REVIEW .■" ■ ... ;. .1 ■ .-' . "Evening Post," 29th May. 'Mr. William Grounds, speaking at' the North Auckland Dairy Association's mcct 1 ing on Tuesday, reviewed the London butter market position as it is td-day. Mr. Grounds came into great prominence in the dairy export world as chairman of the Dairy Export Producers' Board during the period when that body assumed control of the price at which New Zealand butter and cheese should be sold—a policy that aroused British provision trade hostility and- which was abandoned. Mr. Grounds, when referring to to-day's prices for New Zealand butter and cheese, this iveek at the above-mentioned meeting, said "the serious side of the past year's operations is the low price- realised during the past few months. It was inevitable that prices must recede considerably. The fall was precipitated by. a series of financent crises in America and later in -England. In spite of the inevitable decline the trouble has been aided by the'lack of an efficient marketing system." Mr. Grounds added that, in some quarters the decline in prices had been regarded as a mystery; but it was no mystery to those well informed, who had pointed out in the past few years that the industry would suffer a breakdown in prices whenever heavy production in Australia and New Zealand was experienced simultaneously. It was safe to assume that the absence of a satisfactory control of the market had been responsible for an additional fall of 18s to 28s. LOWEST FOR FIFTEEN YEARS. The London economic .journal, "The Statist," however, shows that the downward movement in sterling wholesale prices continued unchecked m March. "The Statist's" index number at;the end of the month stood at 103.0 (average prices in 1867-77 being equal to 100). This figure was 17 per cent, lower than that, tor February, 1930, and 14.5 per cent, lower than that for' the corresponding period r^Sin'Slesale prices since the -^is^^^C^deT Ttl?nde-Sfmbfr. the fall in pnc. appears to be.losing some'of its xnomen?un<! but as yet there is no apparent sign «Wt the movement has spent itself. Ihe deflationary tendencies are at work. NEW ZEALAND NOT ALONE. Butter and cheese, wool and meat, m the hereunder shows the general fall m PSngcs'ih group .index numbers and in ?he general index number, over the month bl March last,, the past year, and rince the bUtbr^ o£ the'war' ™^ in, the- following 'table :-r, .■ ■ ', V': - ■' Mar., Mar., June, ' '■'■-. ".■ " ■'■ 1930. 1929. 1914. S,S»b--:::;::"S:iiil Sugar; coffee, and tea. 5W 75^ Foodstuffs"'.....^. Wf" 'I^> -™ gndrfe 8 8 :::;:;::.... ™ Materials ■..;.....^ WSJ ' w' '^ :,Totals /.'.'. 103-0- ". 120.5 81.2 O:he decline on the year. in. foodstuffsStet March, 1930, compared' with corresponding date of 1929-is:24 per cent, in 27:8 ncr cent, lower on the year-and the mice of raw wool would have been ?aken into account in compiling the return Generally there was a fall in-pr.ee. of all commodities in the aggregate at 31st March last of 1.7 per cent on pnWM af 28th 'February last; of 14.5 per cent, as compared with March, 1929, and the margin between aggregate wholesale prices as-averaged for June, 1914, .has been farrowed to but 26.8 per cent..more than the pre-war average. Butter and cheese, wool and meat, are not the, only commodities, to-day approaching pre-war levels ot. prices.. ■ •',