The Evening Star MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1929. WHY ONLY LONDON?

Evening Star, Issue 20109, 25 February 1929, Page 8

The Evening Star MONDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1929. WHY ONLY LONDON?

A matt ku which should ho ol juiciest to New Zealand ivuduccrs,, is the rivalry between different British ports for our trade. A few weeks ago Glasgow sent out hero a representative urging the importance of that port as a distributing <centre and seeking to .stimulate direct trade with New Zealand. lie has been followed by the trade assistant ot the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board on a similar errand on behalf of Liverpool. In Australia at present, • and .shortly to visit. Now Zealand, arc representatives of the Port of London Authority unmistakably commissioned to seek to uphold the existing order of tilings in the matter of export routes, winch is concentration on London. The tactics employed by tins last-named delegation have been hotly challenged by the Australian and New Zealand representative of the. Port ol Manchoslei. They were disclosed as soon as foot was set on land at Fremantle. It was stated there that "as the nninulactuiing industries in England were gradually drifting to the South, London's advantageous position as an industrial as well as a commercial city was more predominant than ever.” The mam facts arc that there is a depression in the textile industries ot the North, both in the 'Lancashire cotton industry and the Yorkshire woollen industry. But it is hoped and believed that tins dullness will pass, just as the slack times in the steel production and engineering trades and the shipvaids. aio now believed to be passing in the North of England. The motor vehicle boom is chiefly responsible for the tremendous increase of manntacturing in the South of England. In the uphill fight Britain is putting up for recovery of the world’s markets it appears .selfish, narrow-minded, and injurious for one part of the country to belittle another's industries. '1 ho Southern attack has induced from the North the retort that “so f nr from the alleged southward drift of industries materially affecting the situation, London is feeling the effects of economic pressure to nn cxtent, because the quantity of imports distributed and manufactured goods shipped via that’ port is altogether out of proportion to its economic position, having regard to the location of the principal British industries and the distribution of population engaged in them,”

The' aspect,' however, which chiefly; conyerus the New Zealand producer is whether better results would accrue, to him if the distribution of our staple

exports were made from various British ports instead of from Loudon as at present. Jt is true that a AVesfc ot England service exists. Its inception was duo to the recognition of the existence of markets there of considerable absorptive power. It dates back to the days of the late Air Seddon, who had his doubts about concentration on London being the wisest plan for the distribution of our frozen meat, for example, and once spoke of the possibility of the New Zealand Government opening retail butchers' simps all over England so as to bring producer and consumer as close as possible. But the West of England service lias hardly made the progress of which it is believed capable. It is useful, but it is too infrequent to receive the patronage onr exporters would like to extend to it, for they are fully aware of the markets existing behind those ports, and arc not misled by propaganda from London. Regularity of shipments is the basis on which, trade is developed. The Imperial Economic Committee’s report on the marketing of- dairy produce contains one or two apposite observations which wo quote herewith; " AVc recognise that the conditions of the United Kingdom market, where the irregular arrival of supplies leads to fluctuations in price, have, justified special slops on the part of overseas producers to safeguard their interests. Such fluctuations in price have given the opportunity for speculation to buyers and sellers, whose operations have magnified those productions. The remedy is the regularising ol supply and the stimulation of demand. . . . Imported snp-

plies of butter and cheese are distributed by rail from London into distant, parts ol the kingdom, being thus consigned, frequently at considerable cost, to the .neighbourhood of local ports, 11 is obviously desirable to land butter and cheese at a. poi‘l, whore there is no adequate market to which buyers arc in the habit of resorting from the surrounding region. AA'e are, however, infoi.ntecl that one of the main reasons why such markets-do not develop at provincial ports is that the cargoes from the dominions, owing to various circumstances, do not arrive at regular intervals. . . ■ It appears to us that an effort might bo made to build up markets with regular supplies at three or four ports, say Liverpool or Manchester, Glasgow, Avonmouth, and Hull.”

This is the expert official advice of one of the most representative ami thorough committees that have over investigated such a ((notion. Inquiries made locally show that there is every desire to test other British markets than London with shipments of our frozen meat and dairy produce. The obstacle is that fotiuci tests have nut had encouraging results. One learns of such incidents as a consignment of honed heel direct to Glasgow failing to soli there, being slotted to London, and being resold from there to Glasgow, where it readily went into consumption. All the evidence points one way. London has such a grip on the distributing trade that it is a lormidablo task to effect any diversion. And the consensus of business opinion is that tin- main effort must bo made from the other end, not Irani this. ‘•We are perfectly willing to ship direct to other British ports,” is a typical observation, “but why don’t they buy?” The position seems to he that the prospective buyers arc awaiting regularity of supplies, which means frequent and regular sailings. That rests with tho shipping companies, which arc usually alert to open up fresh trade routes. All the parties concerned arc thus waiting on one another. it is to be hoped that the visit of Mr Watson Rome, on behalf of the Mersey Docks and .Harbour Board, will bring them together. Liverpool shows the best prospects of all alternative ports to London. It has all the port facilities for refrigerated and other cargoes; it lias a densely-populated hinterland as a market; and there is a possibility of cheaper freights through the. saving of time in “ turning round,” it being claimed that nearly ail the vessels which take our products to .London have to go to Liverpool lor back cargoes to the dominions. Any reasonable opportunity of slopping our exports direct to the North of England should ho seized. Some of thorn reach there now via Loudon, but the necessary rcliandiings involve loss of quality and diminished returns to the producer. But. as wo stated he.loro, the initiative seems to lie with Liverpool importers.