COURTAULDS, LIMITED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21470, 19 April 1933, Page 7

COURTAULDS, LIMITED

NET PROFITS INCREASED JAPANESE COMPETITION Net profits shown by Courtaukls, Limited, British manufacturers of textiles and rayons, were £'1,(359,050 in 1932, compared with £1,101,687 in the previous year. Ordinary dividend for tho year was 4 per cent, against 5 per cent for 1931. At the annual meeting -in London, Mr. S. Courtauld said England produced 69,000,0001b. of excised rayon yarn in 1031J, compared with 53,000,0001b. in 1931 and 16,000,0001b. in 1930—an increase of about 30 per cent last year and 50 per cent in two years. He referred to Japanese competition in the rayon industry. He said Japan was not only capturing Eastern markots, -but it was beginning to export rayon yarn to Europe, while its competition in woven goods, both layon and cotton, was something which Lancashire already felt to its cost. Japan's Jow wages, longer working hours, and primitive living conditions, coupled with the depreciation of its currency, made it impossible for Western nations to compete with it upon ordinary terms.. Comparing English and Japanese wages in the textile industry, Mr. Courtauld said that in 1932 women workers—spinners, weavers and throwers—in the Japanese cotton and silk manufacturing industries were receiving wages, based on present rates of exchange, varying from about 1 l-7d to 1 2-5 d an hour. In these industries a. higher proportion of women was employed than in England. In the Japanese rayon industry women were getting about l{d an hour, while skilled male workers received from about 1d to 2 1-1 Od an hour. Courtaukls in England were paying their women workers in their silk and rayon lactones about eight times as much as the corresponding Japanese women received, and the male rayon worker was getting more for one hour's work than his Japanese opposite number got for a whole day—in other words, tho wage rate was about ten times as high. CHILLED BEEF SHIPMENT PORT FAIREYS CARGO ARRIVAL AT LONDON [I'ROM oun owx corresvondkxt] LONDON, March 14 \ TJie l'ort Fairev sailed from Welling- ! ton on February 6 carrying, among' other cargo, 293 hindquarters and 181 j forequarters of chilled 1 eef. The loading operations had been made an j occasion of some importance, and the \ Governor-General had visited the Com- j i monwcalth and Dominion cargo ship, fluference to the experimental cargo has been made on many occasions in London and provincial newspapers, and its arrival in this country has been looked forward to with mild interest by the general public and with much greater interest by those connected with the trade. The Port Fairev sailed up the Thames yesterday after a perfect summer trip round Cape Horn, and this morning the vessel was in dock and unloading operations were begun. At three o'clock this afternoon a sufficient quantity of New Zealand lamb had been taken out to uncover the sealed door of the hold where the beef had been stored at a temperature of 29 degrees Fab. throughout the voyage. INlr. J? S. Forsyth, Mr. Neville Wright, New Zealand representative of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, and three of tlio scientists from the Cambridge Low Temperature Research Station, were the guests of the directors, represented by Sir James Cory, and the manager, Mr. W. Donald, of the company, to-day. After lunching on board with the captain and sorno of the officers, they descended to the hold to sco the first of the chilled beef taken out. As each quarter was carried into the open exports from Messrs. Borthwiek and Company and the scientists probed and cut and took temperatures, and smelted the meat. In the end tho manager of the shipping company was able to telephone his office and tell them to carry on with a luncheon party on the ship to-morrow. This means that the beef will go into consumption. Many of tho quarters had a certain quantity of mould on the surface, but this defect was less notieor.blo when the quarters further from the door wore taken out. Tho story of tho experiment ends there for the present. Some 300 quarters will bo offered for sale at Smithfield to-morrow. Not until tho trade Jias examined and tested the meat and offered a prieo for it will it be possible to pronounce a verdict as to tho success or otherwise of tlio experiment. AUSTRALIAN COMPANIES TRADING RESULTS IMPROVE Tim following summary of not profits reported during the past .six months by 300 public companies carrying on ail classes of business in Australia is contained in tlio National Bank of Australasia's review for March: loyo .1931 11)32 Total profile. £9,439, Ml £5,733,500 £(>,017.500 Total louses 400,490 1,901,5G8 1,349,877 Net . £8,972,651 £3,831,932 £1.097.023 The review comments that some improvement in trading results is shown, but, as most of the accounts cover a full-year's transactions, tho comparison is not as up-to-date as could bo wished. NEW ZEALAND MONEY ABROAD The cost in New Zealand currency of tho pound sterling and of tho principal foreign units, on tho latest quotations, is as follows; — Present t'lico Far sd s d London, pound .. .. 24 11.58 GO 0.00 Australia, pound . .. 20 0.00 20 0.00 Now York, dollar . 7 0.55 4 1.. H Montreal, dollar .. .. 6 2.36 4 1.31 Paris, franc .. ... 0 3.46 0 1.98 Berlin, mark . . . . 1 8.86 0 11.74 Copenhagen, krone . . 1 1.36 1 1.22 Yokohama, yen . . . . I G;GS 2 0.53 These valuations represent the current rates at which banks sell drafts payable on demand CUSTOMS EXCHANGE RATESRates of exchange ruling at the announced date of departure of the vessels named are shown in tho following table. They are subject to confirmation by the Customs Department when tho exact time of departure is learned on arrival of tho vessels in New Zealand, finally declared rates being marked*:— Wirrnl, America, dollars . .. 3.44} Niagara, America, dollars . . . . *3.46 Ninffara, Canada, dollars . . *4 15 ft olden Eagle, America, dollars . . 3.421 Brisbane' Marti, Japan, yen . . . 15 l-32d Waikawa, America, dollars .. 3.425 Mariposa, America, dollars . . .. 3.41 £ Canadian Cruiser, Canada, dollars 4.14