ECONOMIC CHANGES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23021, 26 April 1938, Page 7

ECONOMIC CHANGES

BRITISH DOMINIONS GREATER SELF-SUFFICIENCY WESTMINSTER BANK REVIEW (Received April •J5, s.r> p.m.) LONDON, April -Ji Ihe Westminster Bank's review contains an exhaustive summary of economic changes in the Dominions, it considers that increased self-iiufliciency, if not carried too far, will benefit them in peace or war. From the viewpoint of imperial trade this means that the Dominions will have better markets for all kinds of machinery and bigger buyers ot luxuries which do not justifv local manufacture.

industrial development, however, brings problems to Australia and Canada which are reaching a point where they may bo benefited more by a relaxation of international trade restrictions than by a rigid maintenance of their own tariffs.

Moreover, the growth of the industrial population is not wholly desirable and may cause the Dominions to look askance at immigrants who may swell worklcss towns in times of industrial depression. The Westminster Bank also points out that the Dominions aro becoming increasingly self-financing, tending substantially to reduce activity on the London capital market. Unless redemptions by the Dominions are offset by fresh overseas lending Britain's interest from receipts abroad must permanently iall, and the balance of payments beniore more difficult to restore.

PROGRESS OF BANKING

EVIDENCE OF STRENGTH PROFITS OF ENGLISH COMPANIES lhe annual report of the principal British banks, known as the Big Five, have already reflected in broad outline the strength of British finance and commerce. Another valuable indication ot x the activity of British trading may bo gathered from the results achieved by certain other British banks which specialise in financing overseas trade, states an article from His Majesty's Trade Commissioner at Wellington.

In this connection the recently-issued annual statements of three of these banks may be taken as typical. Th.j National Bank of India has again earned what is now a regular dividend of 18 per cent. The Eastern Hank repeats a dividend of 7 per cent, while the Mercantile Bank of India continues to earn an annual dividend of ]2 per cent. The total assets of these three banks are £'6.5,1)00,01)0, and two of them have reserves in excess of their capital. The total of their cash, investments and bills against their liabilities to the public is in one case G9 per cent and in the two others 80 per cejit.

The results obtained by these banks bear witness to the vitality of British trading operations in the East. Other evidence of a more general nature of the expansion of British trade in all parts of the world, as well as at home, is furnished by the annual reports of British companies themselves. So far this year 523 British companies have published their accounts relating to 12 months' trade. The aggregate results show that the total of net profits, after payment of debenture interest, was over £78,000,000, compared with £70,000,000 in the previous year. The activities of these companies cover all branches of British, trade, from public utility, undertakings, shipping, mining, coal, iron and steel, to motors and aviation, textiles, retail business and many others.

DONAGHY'S ROPE COMPANY

YEAR'S DIVIDEND UNCHANGED

The directors of Rope and Twine Company. Limited, Auckland and Dunedin, have declared a final dividend of Is a share for the half-year ended March 31. With the interim dividend of Is a share, the full distribution of 2s a share, or 10 per cent, is unchanged. The capital of the company was increased during the year from £47.000 to £75.000 by the creation of 28,000 new orclinarv shares of £1 each.

MARKET FOR RUBBER LOWER AMERICAN CONSUMPTION Consumption of crude rubber in the United States in February was only 23,868 tons, compared with 29,429 tons in the previous month and 50,282 tons in February last year, according to figures received in London recently. The figure for February is well below recent estimates, which ranged from 25,000 to 27.000 tons.

The decline is partly attributable to the fact that there were only 22 working days in February compared with 25 in January. Consumption per working day, none the less, was substantially lower at 1,085 tons compared with 1177 tons.

February's total is the smallest since that for March, 1933. United States rubber imports in February were about 1800 tons higher at 43,930 tons, and stocks wore increased by nearly 20,000 tons, to 288,883 tons. On the other hand, the quantity of rubber afloat to America at the end of the month was 10,000 tons lower than at the end of January. Consumption of reclaim was higher. In the first two months of this year America has consumed 53,297 tons of crude rubber, compared with 99,025 tons in the same period last year.

APPLES AND PEARS NEW ZEALAND SHIPMENTS (Received April 25, 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, April 24 ' Apples are in cood demand. New Zenlands lay the Rangitiki sold as follows: —Coxs. 9s .'s(l to lis 3d. Pears are firm. New Zealan/ls by the Rangitiki sold as follows:—Hoses, 10s to 12s; Coles, 10s Od to 12s 9d. COTTON, RUBBER, JUTE, ETC. LONDON, April 23 (Quotations on April 10 in parentheses) Cotton. —Spot. 4.9-W1 (4.89 d) a lb.; May delivery, 4.82 d (4.78<1). ■Rubber. —Para, oj!d (ojrt) a lb.; plantation and smoked, 6 3-16 d (6 1-1 <3(1). Jute. —April-May shipments, £l7 7s 6d (£l7 15s) a ton. Copra.—April-May shipments, South Sea, sun-dried, £ll to London and Rotterdam (£lO 17s 6d) a ton; South Sea, smoked, £lO 17s Cd to Marseilles and Genoa (£lO 15s); plantation, Rabaul, hot-air dried (£l2) to London and Rotterdam (£ll 15s). Linseed 0i1.—£27 15s (£27 10s) a ton. ' Turpentine.—3os 9d (30s 3d) a, cwt. MINING SHARES IN LONDON LONDON, April 2'2 On tho mining market to-day the following quotations ruledClutha River Company, buyers Is 7}d, sellers Is 10H; Molyneaux River Company, buyers Is lid, sellers 1b 4Jd.