BRITISH COMMERCE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 248, 17 September 1934, Page 7

BRITISH COMMERCE.

THE RETURNS ANALYSED. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, Sept. 14. The Board of Trade returns for August show an expansion of both imports and exports as compared with August, 1933. Imports were of a value of £60,027,060, being an increase of £2,000,832, compared with the figures for July, and of £3,351,783 on August of last year. Exports were of a value of £32,090,009, a decrease of £139,612 on the figure for July which, owing to the holiday season, had more working days than the month under review, and an increase of £1,093,261 over the total for August of 1933. The value of re-exports during the past month was £33,301,597.

For the first eight months of this year imports totalled £479,444,259, an increase of £49,281,061, compared with the corresponding period of last year, while exports, at £255,Q89,324, show an increase for the eight months of £18,910,595. The increase in the volume of imports during the past eight months of nearly £50,000,000 is heaviest in the category of raw materials and unmanufactured articles which, compared with the corresponding period of 1933, show an advance of £27,554,964. Articles wholly or mainly manufactured increased by £17,626,342, and food, drink and tobacco by £4,015,220. In regard to exports during the eight months, articles wholly or mainly manufactured show an advance of £15,091,088 on last year’s figures, while raw materials exported increased by £1,831,076, and food, drink and tobacco by £T,980,815. LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE. MORE ACTIVITY DISPLAYED. LONDON, Sept. 15. With the holiday season, drawing to a close the Stock Exchange is beginning to show more activity and the general tone is quite'satisfactory. The gilt-edged market is steady with Dominions’ stocks in good demand. The new r Nigerian conversion loan had a good reception and the Argentine conversion of a number of 5 per cent, stocks amounting to nearly £lO,000,000 into four and-a-half sterling bonds at 931 was also well received. This issue is interesting from the fact that the Argentine’s credit is bo good that the Government has been able to dispense with the underwriting of a large proportion of the issue, only about £4,500,000 being underwritten.