TINPLATE INDUSTRY

Evening Star, Issue 23335, 3 August 1939, Page 9

TINPLATE INDUSTRY

TARIFF INQUIRY IH AUSTRALIA BOARD CONCLUDES ITS HEARING " NATURAL INDUSTRY " SAYS CHAIRMAN; B.H.P.'S PART No industry seemed more natural for development on economic lines in Australia than the tin-plate industry, the chairman of the Tariff Board (Mr H. M'Conaghy) said, when the board concluded its hearing of a request by the Broken Hill Proprietary Company Ltd. for protective duties to enable it to establish the tinplate industry at Whyalla (South Australia) or Newcastle (New South Wales), at a capital cost exceeding £4,000,000. “ It has been suggested that if the Australian tinplate market is lost to Great Britain, tinplate interests there may press for a withdrawal of preference given to certain Australian produce on the British market, particularly canned fruits,” said the AuditorGeneral for South Australia (Mr J. W, Wainwright). “Information I have received from reliable sources is what the British Government does not view unfavourably Australia’s policy of building up her secondary industries. From a defence and population aspect she must do so.”

Mr M'Conaghy said that it was regrettable that those who had prepared the British case had used such strong language when referring to the possibility of resentment in Great Britain if British tinplate was excluded from the Australian market. The remarks about. possible retaliation by Britain had given a lead to people who should not be expected to have the same depth of thought as the leaders of their industry. As the producers in Great Britain were concentrated in one area, propaganda work could bo carried out simply on the line of “ We will not buy your peaches unless they are in our cans.”

Mr Wainwright said that the Broken Hill Proprietary Company would prefer to establish its plant at Whyalla, provided it was assured of 15 years' protection. The company had said that if it were granted 10 years’ protection it would establish it in New South Wales. The longer period was required to enable it to recoup additional capital expenditure involved in erecting works at Whyalla.

From a defence aspect, the establish ment of the works at Whyalla would bo preferable to erecting them on the eastern coast of Australia. Vital industries were already concentrated at Newcastle, which was open to attack. Whvalla could more easily be protected. Mr Wainwright claimed that if the industry were established in South Australia it would help to check the drift of the population to other States. WORLD TRADE IN RAYON Details of imports covering nearly til) important consuming countries indicate that the index number of world trade in rayon fabrics (based on 1936 as in stood for February. 1939, at 92, against 97 in January. 1939. For the first two months of 1939 the index number was 94, against 100 in the corresponding period in 1938 and 111 during the whole of 1937. The aggregate totals (in million square yards) are as follows:

Apart from Far Eastern trade conducted by Japan, almost every market has suffered to a greater degree than is shown by the index numbers above. This feature is very marked in Africa and Australia, where Japanese imports show very big declines.— 1 Manchester Guardian Commercial.’-

1939. 1933. 1937. 1936. Jan.Feb. Feb. Feb. Feb. Europe 13.3 15.9 81.1 70.9 Asia ... ... 54.8 48.5 344.3 297.2 Africa 5.9 12.7 88.5 78.6 America ... 2.6 2.4 14.5 8.3 Australasia 10.8 13.0 84.6 99.8 87.4 92.5 613.0 554.8