MONEY MUCH DEARER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18629, 9 February 1924, Page 10

MONEY MUCH DEARER.

RISE to 8 PER CENT. FEARED. NO LOAN in MEANTIME. IMPERIAL SCHEME IN SUSPENSE"When -we go for another loan, we shall probably have to pay 6 par cent., ami perhaps another half per cent, for expenses," declared: Mr. Massey in his speech in Wellington on Wednesday. "I don't like the idea of our borrowing at what I call a loss," he added. "Our last loan cost us little more than 4v per cent., and there is a tremendous difference between 4 and 6. It is the difference between profit and lons. lam not inclined to go for a loan while the price of money is oper cent. "We can go on for a few months, wait, ing to see if any change will take place in the British market. It may be that there will be a change of Government, and, when I say that, I do not mean to reflect on the present Government, for I am quite willing to give them a. chance. Money has become very much dearer,'and it is very bad for us. ' It will interfere with our policy of development, and it may also interfere with our departmental operations. This country will stand a great deal of development, and it is thereore eminently desirable that ,we should have cheap money." Mr. Massey referred to the development loans proposed by. the lata British Government, on which the interest was to be practically at the rate of li per cent, for five years, on condition that the money was used for new development works and spent.chiefly on materials and equipment produced in British workshops, thus assisting to solve the. unemployed problem. He had wanted, he said, to take advantage of the scheme for hydro-electric and railway equipment and material, and for material for bridges, and so forth; but at present the whole scheme stands over. He thought, therefore, that if we could get some of that development loan money, even if it was only two or three millions at 1£ per cent, for five years, it would be a very great thing. The will to do it was with the present Government, he believed, but quite a number of changes had taken place since the loans were . first suggested.