CO-OPERATIVE TRADING

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 14 June 1928, Page 6

CO-OPERATIVE TRADING

FARMERS’ SUCCESSFUL YEAR.

IMPROVING FINANCES. fourteenth annual meeting . Increasing confidence in the financial position of the Farmers’ Co-operative .irgunisation Society of Now Zealand, Ltd., - was expressed at the foiirteeiTt-ir annual meeting of shareholders, which drew an attendance of over 200 to the Foresters’ Hall, Hawera, to-clay. The .result of the year’s* operations showed, that the period had been the most successful of the past decade. A profit of £T6,003 os 8d was disclosed, reduced by a reserve for bad debts to £14,092 t3s sd, from which £2700 reserved for income tax left £11,392 13s od as the act resu’t. Mr Alex Hunter, chairman of dictions.. presided. THE CHAIRMAN’S REPORT. “The annual report and balance-sheet .erbain-ly make much more pleasant ending than on any former occasion.” aid thi? chairman in his report. Your directors have now such confilenee* in the strength of the financial losition that they feel justified in recommending payment of a dividend. Hie proposed 3 per cent, may seem on die low side*, but it wa® considered wiser to make* a. low start and rise a** e,suits permit, rather than to set a vigher standard which it might later :o found unwise to continue. Our hankers are so well satisfied with die position that they have released die guarantee , A veil by the directors. Vs some ex-directors and estates* of others, now deceased were bound by those guarantees, the cancellation has ocn the more* pleasing. The absence of nominations for the vacancies oil the board, outside those :f the retiring direeors, may. I presume, ;c taken as an expression of confidence In the policy pursued. and on their and my r own behalf 1 thank you. The sitting bon.rdl has been tried in the fire, and not found wanting. It has had .many liffieulties to face a.nd some kicks to sake. Itfc( ha.si made mistakes. The inly people or bodies wlno. have not are those who have done nothing. DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED.

In our existence of fourteen years we have had seven different admi.ii istradons—four managers* and three actdnginanageirs. besides minor changes gaore. We have passed through the jeriod o.f the Great War and the succeeding boom and slump, and the stringency of last vear. The amount* of 'a pi tail that we had to “play” with luring aL’, but the laist few years was /cry small —and perhaps* better so- — uni even now it can hardly be considered adequate. /rh© bank overdraft —on the directors guarantee —lias been over £IOO,OOO aittimes, a.nd so* also haw a deposits; and et we were able to meet deposits* that had to be, paid off when due ; we paid -•ash for our purchases and never held p cheques for more than a day or two. T'o to 1920 we paid out rebates and dividends, totalling nearly £30,000 — foolishly no doubt. The society has helped many farmers* through the difficult times, and has helped all by keeping wices-of their requirements at_ a lower standard than would have obtained but or its operations. Following the procedure adopted last -ear, copies of the auditors’ report have been issued. These deal fully with the balance-sheet. and enable me to considerably shorten my remarks. INCREASE OP DEPOSITS. The fixed deposits show an increase. Those bearing the higher rates of interest have been paid off or redeposited it lower rates, and are spread over four .ears as follows :—1928 ,'£10,010; 1929, £16,770; 1930. £5836; 1931, £1075. Amounts paid oft during the year total £3930. and renewals and new deposits unount to £8336. Or mortgages, £3450 have been paid off and £3OOO renewed (on the amortizr principle, which will be totally extinguished in 1948). The existing mortgages fall due *as follows: £1350 m 1928 £4OOO in 1930, and £6OOO in 1932. . . 'Though th,e floor space of the wool /tore has been doubted at a. cost of £3BOO. the amount of £3009 written off properties, leaves the total little more than last year. Machinery and plant* stand about tin' 1 same but, renewals total £22 1 4, while depreciation to the amount of £2379 has been written off. Included in the sum at credit of current accounts is £6448 owing to employees *as their share of the liquidated superannuation fund. _ There were heavy paddock sales, besides* seven yard sales', totalling nearly 7 £12,000, in the last week in March, and as cheques -,v(**'j *■ drawn for most of t-lint. amount an cl appear in the un presented cheques, t emphasises the strength of the position at the< bank. The sundry debtors also appear heavy, for payments for the stock Fold ah these* sales did not begin to come in till April. The actual increase is only £7400. winch, in view of a 22 per cent, increase in turnover, is very satisfactory. WOOL VALUES DOUBLED. The secured accounts* have increased by £12,000, and amount to oven* 50 per cent, of th,3 total, which is* .spread over '551 accounts, all of which except eight are under £2OOO. The wool business shows a. pleasing increase* from 4441 bale® to 651*5, while the total value lias* doubled. There have been many. testimonials from ■ lienls* to the efficiency of the* handling *>!’ clips. Minor alterations* to the. store are being made, which will greatly reduce handling and save time, and give better service. The gross profits increased by £12,’39 while the working expenses* for which the* .staff is responsible show a •ict rise of £1743. and salaries : ncreased! by £1415, postages, etc., by £394, and’ repairs and maintenance '•927. besides minor increases, and motor repairs', etc., have* fallen £ll7, -outs. etc. £152, and travelling expenses £7l. leaving a net increase as inen-

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cioned above, and which on the turnover is quite reasonable. These- items ndicate careful watching ana economy, .onsistent with efficiency, .and with the general results are a credit to the executive officers and to the staff as a whole.

lire spirit of co-operation and keenness for the success of the society is very marked, and 1 can assure you that there is a. very great amount of overtime worked by all ranks, and, or' course, that comes hardest on the executive officers. They often start before “■Siidey” time, and never stop by it. Dor best thaink-s. are due to them all. SU PER A N NIT ATI ON FUND CLOSED. The employees’ superannuation fund has been wound up. Many of the members wore dissatisfied with the prospective benefits from the fund, and proposals were formulated with a view to ncreasing the benefits, but, after long and careful consideration, the employees, ait a. fully attended meeting, decided in favour of winding -up the fund.

This has been completed on a. basis mutually agreed upon, and the employees have received their quota, while tlr.3 amount reverting to the society, £3125, has been placed to the credit of the profit' and loss appropriation account. The debit of this account has been also decreased bv the carry forward from laist year, and £11,027 from the forfeited shares reserve account, and, all going well, it should be almost, iff not com'Vetely, wiped out a year hence. A comparison of some of the figures of past and present balance-sheets is interesting. As mentioned before, the bank overdraft, which was at one time over £IOO,OOO is now £2890. and I may sav it has at times this autumn been many thousands dn credit. Then the deposits which have been also over £IOO,000, are now £36,691. At their highest point in 1920, mortra.toes stood at £28,800, and are now £14.350. In these three accounts the reduction is therefore £184.870. ResYl.es this, since 1921 we have written off from properties £7112, plant 515,114. and had debts £19,649.

OUTSTANDING FARMERS’ SEASON

The past season has been one of the bast from a farmers’ point ox view that the country lias ever known. There ha.s been a high average of .sunshine, and a marked absence of strong winds. \Ye could have done with more rain at times on the dairying lands, but the dry summer lias been a boon to the hill country. it lias greatly assisted in bringing hack depreciated land into a productive state, through burning and regrassing.

Prices for produce generally have been very good and very steady. Fat stock have been in keen demand' at remunerative prices. Wool has been particularly good and the extra income to the Dominion from this source has p-eatlv helped to relieve the financial situation. _ The greatest factor, of jourse, in righting the balance of trade has been the cutting down of buying from overspas. The dairy season, which did mot look too promising back in the summer, has come out very well, and there ha,s been am absence of violent fluctuations in prices, which are no good to the producer in New Zealand. TTe is farthest away from the mouth that cats his produce and generally is a had last in learning what is happening or ,Ukelv to happen in the markets, and so others Trail what should come to him.

I would therefore urge you to stand by your co-operative concerns, and where, there are mistakes and failures 2efc busy .and right them. Don’t tear the show down bv allowing temporary personal gains to remove your support and so undermine the structure. Corn oration can only be defeated from within.

The chairman moved the. adoption of th© report (previously published') and balance-sheet, and 1 payment of the dividend recommended.