Samoa and the Slump

Manawatu Times, Volume LV, Issue 6788, 20 February 1932, Page 7

Samoa and the Slump

RAISING MORE REVENUE. HIGHER CUSTOMS DUTIES. APIA, Fob. 16. Because the local price paid for ■copra is so low tho spending power of the natives is greatly curtailed, and with salary cuts being the order of tho day in the Administration and business houses, a very lean Christinas trado was looked for.

The actual results throughout tho group, however, were much better than wore expected. Tho increased Customs duties, which becamo effective on January 1, were rather a bombshell to traders. It was known that new sources of revenue w'ero being looked for by the Administration, and that the import duty was likely to be increased, but not to such an extent.

Harbour dues also have Been raised considerably. These changes have brought about the revival of the Chamber of Commerce, which has been defunct for tho past four years, and one of the first duties of the newly-elected Council of the Chamber was to meet the Administrator with a view to having the new import duties removed or reduced, and also to have the export duty on copra, which is now 30s a ton, brought to a lower level.

Tho result of the interview is that no remission will bo made in the meantime. The cocoa crops are coming m well, though it is feared that heavy rains have caused black pods to some extent, which means a considerable loss to tho planters. There was general satisfaction, especially among the Samoans, when the copra merchants announced an advance of a quarter of a cent in the buying price of copra. The natives and others had long shown their feelings by leaving most of the crop on the ground to rot, while the export trade of the ter-, ritory rapidly fell away, but scarcely had the good news been broadcast when it. was followed by the disconcerting announcement t-hat retail pricc& ha been raised. When the natives expostulated they were told by tho traders that the increase was necessitated by tho new duties, so the Government was to blame and not the traders. Some critics have pointed out that the increases were out of aU proportion to the advance in the duties, and, furthermore, that they did not affect the particular goods in question, which were old stock. . This has raised the question of the Government’s responsibility to see that the natives receive a fair deal a responsibility which was recognised and the Government set up. a Board of Trade to review retail prices. Critics also have expressed the opinion that tho merchants are not considering their best interests in thus dealing with the natives.