TRADE COMPETITION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15063, 9 February 1911, Page 2

TRADE COMPETITION.

, AUCKLAND v. WELLINGTON. \T?eou Oub Owh Correspondent.) AUCKLAND, February 7. An Auckland newspaper correspondent recently aminadiverted on the manner in which the trade of the country districts in the Auckland and Taranaki provinces was slipping away from Auckland to the south/ where, he said, the eyes of the people in the Bay of Plenty and on the west coast were turning to the ultimate detriment of Auckland. This 'morning a reporter drew the attention of Mr A. J. Entrican (chairman of the Harbour Board) to the letter, and elicited some comment. The Auckland Harbour Board, pointed out the chairman, makes special concessions for the'handling of all farm products, the wharfage of farm products being 25 per cent, less than that on ordinary goods, both in the way of export and import, the former paying only half the wharfage of imports. On the question of the comparative cost of carriage to the west coast ports, Wellington has an advantage over Auckland, for while goods ..an be shipped f.o.b. at Wellington, Auckland merchants have to pay 5s or. 6s per ton for railage to Onehunga—a big handicap. As to an argument that lines of steamers will probably tun from Lyttelton* to Wellington and to the Bay of Plenty ports, Mr Entrican is of the opinion that Auckland merchants will bo pleased to- see steamers in at all these ports from tho south, becauso the extra facilities will benefit the Auckland as well as the southern merchants: Any line of steamers running from Lyttelton to the east coast ports will be sure to make Auckland tho terminal port, and will thus increase our facilities for communication with them, remarked Mr Entrican. As for the rumoured line of steamers from Wellington to the Waikato, Mr Entrican pointed out that some time ago the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce asked the' Wellington Chamber to do something, and it was mooted in reply that a line might be started winning from the Waikato Heads and transferring cargo to a hulk or storehouse for transhipment up the river. Under ordinary conditions the Auckland merchants need have no fear of competition of that kind, said Mr Entrican. " The bulk of goods in the shape of produco that come from the. south could be put on board the river steamer at Mercer. After passing through Auckland cheaper than they could be carried from Wellington to Waikato Heads, and I know from personal knowledge that so far as the Wellington merchants are concerned competition is much keener in Auckland, and prices are lower than in Wellington. I also know from conversation with Auckland merchants ' that they are determined to do the business of tho Waikato. The proper way, however, to prevent an extensive railage of goods from Auckland to the Waikato was to make tlie proposed canal and so join the Waikato River with the Auckland harbour. A considerable'amount of outlay will be necessary, as at the present no vessels of any draught or laden with cargo can negotiate the river, but the expenditure will be justified by the result; he was assured.