OVERSEAS TRADE

Evening Star, Issue 18784, 7 November 1924, Page 2

OVERSEAS TRADE

FIGURES FOR HIRE IMTHS. JUST SHORT OF RECORD. HEAVY .MOTOR CAU IMPORTS. The latest attract of statistics gives in-lere-thm {inures, showing New Zealand s total external trade tor the nine mouths ended September 3°. , I It amounted to £77.194,064, which just falls short of the record figure for the corresponding period of 1920. Imports claimed £56,157,756, and _ exports £ll 057,208. Disregarding “ invisible ” itonis, such as interest payments due .abroad, the balance in favor of the nonunion was £4,919,402, as against £10,648,965 at the end ot the half-year. This decrease ot the balance lowaids the end of the year, however, is an annually recurring feature in the trade ligures, and arises out of tue fact that, wheie.is the bulk of exports are shipped in the first half-year, the volume of imports is fairly constant throughout the whole year. Exports show an advance of £3,466,102 over the figure for the first nine months of 1923, wool being mainly responsible for the increase. The value of who! exported to the end of September was £13,345,551, as against the 1925 value of £9,65/,576. This ’’increase of nearly £4,000,000, considered in conjunction with tho fact that the quantity shipped this year was slightly less than during the 1923 period, gives some indication of the record prices obtained. Substantial increases arc also evident in frozen mutton, sheepskins, and rabbitskius, while a falling off was recorded in the export of the following items (1923 figures in parentheses): —Butter, £6,769,756 (£7,463,509); frozen beef, £642/289 (£791 838); kauri gum, £531,533 (£473,822); gold, £408,560 (£490,667). Imports ot £36,137,756 compare favorably with the 1925 total of £31,481,793. The importation of motor vehicles continues at. an increased rate, the figures - up to the end of September being 14,097 vehicles, valued at £2,611,460. This compares with 10,305 vehicles, valued at £1,757,525 during tho 1925 period, and is easily the highest on record. Other increases of importance in tho imports were (1923 values in parentheses): —Wheat, £978,220 (£69); oaks, £138,894 (£5,609); sugar, £1,196,062 (£880,320); tea, £717.650 (£643,135); coal, £606,517 (£285,021); electrical machinery, - £1,630,000 (£1,013,499); railway and tramway plant, £552,829 (£214.286); motor spirit. £1,518,795 (£884,847); timber, £758.843 (£454,298); tobacco, £710,748 (£641,180); cigarettes, £554,031 (£439,815); hardware, £451,818 (£370,930); and arms, ammunition, etc., £279,807 (£168,037). Tho following decreases occurred : —Cotton piece goods, £1,630,946 (£1,944,241); woollen piece goods, £775,605 (£942,080); hosiery, £351,546 (£442.685). In considering the direction of the dominion's trade for fisc period under icview it is seen that tho United Kingdom took exports to the value of £32,417,978, while imports from that .source amounted to £17,152,547. The figures for other countries trading extensively with Now Zealand are as follow (exports first) ; United States, £2,596,298, £5,944,183; Australia, £1,953,066, £4,160,006; Canada, £550,847, £2,937,966. Trade with Germany continues to increase, exports for the period totalling £1,079,996 (mostly wool), while goods of German origin imported into New Zealand were valued at £180.015.