PRICES STABILISATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 July 1943, Page 6

PRICES STABILISATION

MR SULLIVAN’S STATEMENT

WELLINGTON, July 16. The unchanged position of the all group figure of the war-time price index during the last six months was an indication of the success being achieved by the Government stabilisation programme, the Minister in Charge of Stabilisation (Mr Sullivan) said to-day. Although the all group figure remained unchanged there were movements within groups and suh-groups, Mr Sullivan said. Fresh vegetables and eggs showed an increase, but other seasonal items such as potatoes, onions and apples showed a decrease. In the early part of the year controf of the prices of basic vegetables was not complete, and consequently the rise in their prices had a marked effect on the March figure. Since then, control had been extended and this was reflected, to some extent, in the present level of the index. A contributing factor was that a low price was maintained for potatoes, which were subsidises by the Government by a half-penny a pound to offset a possible rise in vegetable- prices. The subsidy ceased to operate on June 30. In working out the index of prices of essentials, Mr Sullivan continued, everything had to be given its proportionate- place and importance in accordance with the average amount the average family would spend on it. That was what the war-time price index was doing. It took in foodstuffs, rent, fuel, light, essential lines of footwear, clothing and drapery and such miscellaneous items as transport, fares, crockery, household cleaning supplies, tooth paste, razor blades and even school stationery, but it did not include non-essentials. The prices of essentials such as bread, flour, oatmeal, sugar and butter had remained unchanged since the outbreak of war, although they had risen from 34 per cent, to as much as 80 per cent, during the last war. The process of stabilisation went far beyond prices, however, and a considerable part of the scheme was directed towards holding costs of production. Beeswax played an important part in the prosecution of the war, Mr Sullivan said to-day, when referring to the beeswax control notice gazetted last night. Last year New Zealand had imported beeswax from Tanganyika, but the British Government had purchased the entira output of that territory, and to meet the lack, of imports the” control notice required anyone holding more than lOlbs of beeswax to furnish a return of the stocks within 14 days, and the disposal, sale or transfer of beeswax was prohibited without the written consent of the Factory Controller. The normal use such- as for manufacture of floor polishes could not be permitted, and the Controller would direct supplies for the essential needs of war.

Mr Sullivan mentioned that some of the uses of beeswax included the sealing of aircraft components, preparation of butter for the tropics, and the manufacture of certain munitions.

The Economic Stabilisation Commission announced to-day that in order to conserve supplies of bottles, the deposit charge on bottles would be increased from one penny to twopence or threepence for quart sizes. The chargt on siphons would be increased from one shilling to two shillings.