HARBOUR BOARD FINANCE

Evening Star, Issue 23100, 28 October 1938, Page 13

HARBOUR BOARD FINANCE

HEAVY REVENUE RECEIPTS RECORD INWARD WHARFAGE TOTAL EFFECT OF EXPORT DUES REDUCTION An exceptionally good financial year was experienced by the Harbour Board during the 12 months ended September 30. total revenue receipts at £208,665 (excluding relief wages and subsidies) being nearly £19,000 in excess of the previous year. Of this increase, however, the sum of £8,200 was due to the increased harbour improvement, the rates of which came into operation on January 1, 1938. A few of the major items were records, while others showed increases over the previous seven years, reported Mr J. Renton, secretary of the board, when presenting the statement at the board meeting last night. Shipping arrivals (tonnage) constituted a record, while import tonnages increased by 43,852 tons to a record figure, as against a decrease in exports of 11,269 tons. The inward wharfage total of £67,121 was the highest in the history of the board, while the outward wharfage, totalling £22,633, was some £1,500 below last year. The effect of the reductions in export dues made from time to time during the last seven years Ifad been to reduce the year’s revenue by some £6OO. Pilotage and port charges, at £39,276, were the highest yet recorded, as was cranage at £2,163, this item showing a steady and substantial increase during the past seven years, the increae over last year being 22 per cent. Berthage charges at £13,131 compared favourably with the previous seven years, bearing in mind that the rate on intercolonial and coastal vessels was reduced from 2d to Id a ton ns from August 1, 1936, representing on the year’s trade the sum of £3,180. Many of the other major items though’ not constituting records, showed increases over the previous seven years. The reductions in overtime charges represented a total of £2,227 for the year. SPECIAL WORKS APPROPRIATIONS. The general cash account expenditure, including transfers to reserve funds (£10,700) and to special works reserve funds (£22,300), reached a total of £224,478, towards which the special works reserve fund contributed £9,000 and other surplus funds £5,000. Included in the expenditure were the following special works: —Birch street wharf, £4,109 (£7,000 in addition paid out of loan account); Leith Canal widening, £4,367 (£5,000 in addition paid out of loan account) ; George street pier,- £5,517 ; and customs wharf accommodation, £3,993. In addition the following transfers were made to reserve funds: —Tug renewal fund, £5,000; plant renewal fund, £3,000; 1938 loans redemption fund, £1,700; accident insurance fund, £1,000; while a special contribution of £2,750 had been made to the sinking fund of the £125,000 (dredge) loan. Transfers to special works reserve fund included £7,700 on account of works provided for in the year’s estimates, but not executed or only partly completed at the end of the year, £5,600 for the new pilot launch, ami £4,000 towards cranes on the George street pier. The following was a summary of the general cash account for the year:— Balance, September 30, 1937, £5,683; receipts, 1937/38 (including subsidies), £213,878; refunds (relief wages), £179; and transfers from reserve funds, £9,000; totalling £228,740. Ordinary expenditure, 1937/38, was £188,728; special transfers to reserves and sinking fund, £13,450; and transfers to special works reserve funcl,_ £22,300, making £224,478; and leaving a balance at September 30, 1938, of £4,262.

The expenditure out of the loan account totalled £12,000, of which £7,000 was on account of the Birch street wharf and £5,000 on account of the heith Canal. The unexpended balance of this loan was allocated as follows: Albany Street School bridge, £1,200 (now available for allocation elsewhere, subject to legislative authority), and Victoria wharf extension, £297. IMPORT TONNAGES. The import tonnages, both in the separate classes and the total, established a record for the port, the comparison with the previous records being as followslntercolonial and coastal, 206,441 tons (1912/13, 205.295) ; overseas, 152,957 tons (1928/29, 148,191); and total, 359,398 tons (1924/25, 338,360 tons). Imports increased by 43,852 tons, or 14 per cent., over last year’s figures, fertilisers accounting for 13,800 tons of the increase. Exports decreased by 11,269 tons, the most notable decreases being wool, from 103,526 to 90,447 bales; fresh fruit, from 5,984 tons to 1,092 tons; fertilisers, from 3,662 tons to 1,401 tons; butter and cheese, from 3,618 tons to 2,108 tons; and scrap metal from 2,545 tons to 162 tons. Increases were shown in the following lines: — Frozen meat, from 12,212 tons to 12,825 tons; cement, from 16 tons to 2,326 tons; beer and stout, from 21,068 tons to 22,717 tons. Tho total cargo handled also exceeded all previous figures, being 484,798 tons, against 464,508 in 1924/25 and 452,215 last year. SHIPPING RETURNS. The shipping arrivals for the year at 1,225,830 tons (net) constituted a record for the port, exceeding the previous record of 1,186,107 by 39,723 tons. The tonnage of oversea vessels (802,882) was highest on record, the best previous year being 779.713 tons. The previous records in both cases were established last year.