COTTON GOODS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25385, 17 November 1943, Page 4

COTTON GOODS

IMPORTS FROM BRITAIN CANCELLATION OF FORWARD SPONSORSHIP The secretary of the Dunedin Manufacturers’ Association (Mr F. L. Hitchens) said yesterday that advice had been received that applications for sponsorships outstanding against the fourth quarter of 1943 in relation to the supply of cotton piece goods from the United Kingdom had been considered by the Textile Advisory Committee appointed by the Commissioner of Supply (Mr F. R. Picot). Information had been received by cablegram from London that allocations, or buying rights, for essent’al civilian cotton ioods, including traders’ quotas for all overseas markets for the period from October 1 to December 31, had been withdrawn and the privilege of forward sponsorship cancelled. , . , . . All applicants for sponsorships which were outstanding had, therefore, been advised that owing to the sudden loss of the expected quotas the applications had been declined. The Indications were, Mr Hitchens said, that the quotas allotted to traders would be restored for the quarter commencing on January 1, 1944, but it was unlikely that sponsorship will again be available for some months. He explained that sponsorships ensured that certain essential classes of cotton materials were given priority of shipment over the less important classes. Owing to the cancellation of sponsorships quantities of materials which were held in the United Kingdom should now come forward and industry should be able to catch up on the manufacture of many' lines which had been relegated to a secondary place on account of war-time requirements Mr Hitchens added that the traders quota represented the rationed percentage of shipments into New Zealand in a basic year on which the ration had been fixed. Britain to-day, however, was producing only 50 per cent, of her pre-war output of textiles, and pro rata New Zealand was receiving only a percentage of the available exports from Britain.