TARIFF REVISION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22100, 2 November 1933, Page 10

TARIFF REVISION

SITTING OF COMMISSION THE CORKBOARD INDUSTRY (Per United Press Association.) WELLINGTON. November I. A duty of 30 per cent, on corkboard coming into New Zealand from a foreign source was sought by Mr J. H. Drum mond on behalf of Newalls, Ltd., insula tion manufacturers, of England, in an application heard before the Tariff Co n mission to-day. Mr Drummond said chit corkboard for cold storage purposes was not manufactured in New Zealand, but was imported in very large quantities. Mr Drummond said that the main sources of supply were England, Spain. Porto gal and the United States, of America. Until September, 1930, his company .-n----joyed a reasonable proportion of the trade, but in the following month Spanish and Portuguese manufacturers, finding themselves with tremendous quantities of material after an unsuccessful effort to corner the world’s corkboard supplies, decided to upset the world market by a drastic cutting of prices, and the same procedure was being adopted to-day with the result that the market for English corkboard was practically dead. An objection was placed before the commission by Mr H. Lowon, representing the National Federation of Clay Industries, England, against the application made at earlier sittings asking for a duty of 20 per cent! on imported silica bricks. It was contended by Mr Lowrn that the high transport, packing and insurance charges which must be borne by United Kingdom silica bricks exported to New Zealand in themselves afforded ample and full protection for the New Zealand industry.