THURSDAY, APRIL 13, 1922. GERMANY'S MERCHANT FLEET.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 13 April 1922, Page 4

THURSDAY, APRIL 13, 1922. GERMANY'S MERCHANT FLEET.

When the- Versailles, jfeace Treaty ordered" Germany to surrender five million tons of her shipping and to build and hand over 200,00U tons of shipping each year for five years it looked as if the Allies had effectively prevented Germany recovering her trading power to the disadvantage of the Allies, whose ships the submarine commanders had s© ruthlessly destroyed/ No* doubt readers of the cable messages pubTished recently in the paper are surprised at the apparently healthy condition of the German shipping companies, which arc still paying large dividends, and are reported to be planning out their future trade services. German ships will re-enter the Australian trade in a few months' time, and before long the Germans may be running their pre^ war services.^ Jn July,' 1914, Germany had 4935 merchant ships of a gross tonnage of 5,240,000. A few days ago f a statement by the manager of the Norddeutcher Lloyd Company showed that Germany has now 1,500,000 tons of shipping in commission and . 1,250,000 tons being built, so that it is clearly seen that she is well on\the way to re-establishing her commercial fleet. In 1919 construction of new shipping was low, the yards turning out only 25,000 tons, but ten limes that tonnage was constructed in 1920, ! and last) year's building totalled! 600,000 tons. This progress is due to the system of co-operation between the industries concerned and the assistance given by the Government. Purchase «f foreign vessels has iftso enabled the position to be made stronger, while even British owners have found it greatly to their advantage to send ships to German yards for repairs. The lower wage rates in Germany enable the companies to build ships at 25 per cent, lower than British companies can build them, and ii is further reported that there have been instances of repair work on ships being done by the German firms at 50 per cent, below the cost of British yards. Meantime British shipping has been passing ' through a very difficult period. ; Hundreds of sh%ss are lying idle owing to -the lack of freights,, cine to the

high, charges which, have r_ o be made to meet running costs, soon the idle ships can be brought into commission again nobody q&n say, but it is obvious that the Gfcrnians »re wasting no time .in ilbeir preparations for resuming their overseas trade. With ships built cheaper than British, and with a lower wage scale, the German ships will be likey to attract a large vols&ie of trade, and Britain will no doubt find that, in spite of the severity o$ the terms of the Peace Treaty, CJermany will still bo a strong commercial competitor within a few years. At the present rate of building up her merchant fleet she will soon have available a tonnage equal to that of pre-war days. It is to be hoped that British owners will be able before I long to effect great reductions in rumiing*' costs and return to much lower prices and freights and thus stimulate* a great growth of trade. danger is that Germany is struggling to "get in first" with her ships, and if she does, as experience has proved, she will be a keen competitor. The problem is a difficult one for the British shipping companies, and it is no doubt largely because of their knowledge of"Germany\s remarkable energy in shipbuilding that they are so desirous of having reductions in running costs effected at the earliest,so as to buifd up their volume of trade and employ all their ships. The decrease in building in Great Britain is easily understood, for the United States is not now pursuing her great programme, which, it was claimed, was to give the Americans pride of place in the merchant services of the world. Britain has been able to hold her own against the American attempt to capture sea trade, But we are inclined to think that the Germans will be more difficult to compete against successfully.