TRADE BALANCES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3870, 15 May 1928, Page 16

TRADE BALANCES.

SHARP CHANGES. AMERICA STILL A SINK. According to Customs returns, in the year ended Alarch 31, 1928. New Zealand's exports increased by £9.279.693 and her imports decreased by £3.773,313, a total gain of £13,053,006. Alore than half the increase in the value of the exports is due to the increase (£4,775.604) in the value of wool exported. A great deal of the fall in imports is found in the figures for motor vehicles. The value of these declined by £1.306.474 (from £3.181,287 in 1926-27 to £1.874.813 in 1927-28), and this is the second financial year in succession that motor vehicle imports have declined by over £1.000.000. The less than £2,000,000 of motor vehicles imported last year contrasts sharply with the over £4.000.000 (to_ be exact £4.229,799) imported in 1925-26. The number of vehicles imported in 1925-26 was 24.337; in 1926-27, 20 126in 1927-28, 11,839. BRITISH lAIPORTS FALL LEAST. On a year showing £3.773.313 less imports, it was to be expected that imports from the United Kingdom would fall, but their rate of fall is much less than the fall-rate in imports from the United States, from Australia, and from Canada.. This fact is made evident by the following ta.ble showing the imports in 192728 from the four chief countries concerned :— 'lmports 1026-27. 1927-28. Decrease, from £ £ £ U. Kingdom ... 21.820.683 21.362.962 457,721 Canada 3.198,09! 2.507,339 690J52 Australia 4,559.399 3.670.544 888.855 United states ... 9.766,910 7,993,156 It will be seen that, among these four, the fall in imports from the United Kingdom is less not only relatively but actually —and very much. less. While imports from the United States in 1927-28 fell off by £1,773,754, exports to the United States declined by ■ £205,884, but in the case ,of_ the other three countries New Zealand’s exports show an increase, as the following table indicates:—

The above figures include re-exports. TASMAN CREDIT, PACIFIC DEBIT. To sum up, New Zealand in 1927-28 improved her trade position with Australia to the extent of £1,507,298 (lower import £888,855, plus greater export £618,443) and actually had at Alarch 31 a favourable balance of trade with the Commonwealth of ’ £187,109 (exports £3,857,653 —imports £3,670,544). This is the first financial year on record, or . at any rate within recent memory, showing a favo urable trade balance with the Commonwealth. In 1926-27 the balance was £1.320,189 adverse to New Zealand. New Zealand also improved her trade position with Canada to an even greater extent, £1.725.512, comprising lower import £690.752, plus greater export £1,034,760, but she still retains a. balance of trade against New Zealand of £442.117 (imports £2,507.339; exports, £2,065.222). With the United States New Zealand curtailed imports by £1,773,754, but at the same time lost exports to the extent of £205.884. and the trade bala nee remains heavily against the Dominion, as her imports from the United States are still £7.993.156 and her exports are less than half, being £3.052,710, or £4.940.446 less than the imports. The adverse balances with United States and Canada together amount to £5.382,563, so the North American Continent remains a financial sink. In Ike case of the United Kingdom New Zealand improved her position by £5,725,778 (lower import £457.721 plus greater export £5,268,057) and recorded for this recovery year an export value nearly double the import value, the margin in the Dominion’s favour being no less than £19.282,699 (exports £40.685.661, imports £21.362,962). so there exists herein a. substantial fund against interest, services, etc., and something to set off the adverse balance of over £5,000.000 shov.<" ing on the exchange with North America.' BUTTER AND CHEESE. Though the figures for the financial year (ended Alarch 31) do not disclose in full the effect of the export season, they have a considerable comparative value, and it is interesting to note that in 1927-28, as compared with 1926-27, the quantity of butter exported increased by more than one-quarter, and the value by nearly one-third. I n the year 1925-26 a lesser export of butter produced a greater value than in 1926-27, but 1927-28 surpasses both of them in both respects. Here are the figures for butter and for cheese for the three years:—

It will lie seen that in cheese also 1926-27 showed a rise in quantity and fall in value, but 1927-28 shows an advance in both. Frozen beef shows a recovery in quantity and in value from the low figures of 1926- but is not up to the figures of 1925-26. In that year 662,234 c wt of frozen beef was exported, valued at £971.464. In 1926-27 the export fell to 365,243 cwt, the value to £478.149. The year just closed shows 572.263 cwt, value £802.919. LEANING ON WOOL AND LAMB. Lamb beats both the former years. The quantity exported has risen from 1,473,268 cwt in 1925-26 to 1,620.775 cwt in the next year, and now' to 1,837.286 cwt. In the same years the value fell from £6.170.610 in 1926-27 to £5.689,186, but in 1927- it is up to £6.494,877. In 1925-26 1,007,697 cwt of frozen mutton was valued for export at £2,688,818, but in the year just closed a greater export, 1. 090,529 cwt, was valued at only £2.070,709. In the intervening year (1926-27) the quantity exported was 981.450 cwt, the value £2,042,021.

Wool shows an increase in quantity but a bigger increase in value. The 725,717 bales exported are a considerable increase over the 628.355 of 1926-27, and the 606,660 of the year before. But the £16,691,385 of Customs value compares still more emphatically with the £11,945,871 of 1926-27. The contrast is not so great with 1925-26, for in that year the lesser clip was estimated to be worth £13,284.232. Sheepskins without wool were valued at £1,247,226 in 1927-28, the year before at £1,296,450, and £1,553,287 in 1925-26. THE RISE IN HIDES. Calfskins and hides found a better market in 1927-28. As compared w’ith the preceding year, the exports decreased in number from 1,209,809 to and the value increased from £774,053 to £1.021,272. Tallow’, with 28.379 tons, valued at £828,663, is not equal to 1925-26 (24,437 tons, £854,741), but is better than the 1926-27 record of 19.284 tons, value £657,844. Gold shows a progressive improvement from 114,2580 z (£470.838) to 124.0860 z (£507,903), and to 129,7120 z (£533,853) in the year- just closed. Decreases of 10 to 15 per cent, occurred in imports of wearing apparel, of petrol (in value, but not in quantity), of electrical equipment, of sugar, and of wheat, but the rate of fall in those cases was nothing like the rate of fall in imports of motor vehicles, which, in 1927-28 numbered 11.839, as against 20,126 in the preceding year, and the value was £1.874.813, as against £3,181,287. The Alarch and March quarter imports and exports compare as under:—

The entries for the Southland Winter Show’ number 978, compared with 928 last year. This is a record for the fixture.

Exports 1926-27. 192'i 28. Increase. to £ £ £ U. Kingdom .. 35,377,604 40.645,GGl 5.268,057 Canada . 1.030,462 2,065,222 1.034,760 Australia 3,239.210 3.857,653 618,443 United States .. . 3,253,594 * -Decrea'se. 3,052,710 *205,884

BVTTEH. Year. Quantity. Value. Cwt. £ 1925-26 ... 1,156,326 9,363.371 1926-27 . 1,233.032 9,033,361 1927-28 ... 1.578,265 CHEESE. 11,964,274 Year. Quantity. Value. Cwt. ' & 1925-26 ... 1,347,633 5,829.548 1926-27 ... 1.515,525 5.774.113 1927-23 ... 1,564,449 6,092,850

March quarter, 1928 11,632,290 23,136,710 March quarter, 1927 11,995,879 16,671,033 Difference • 363,589* 6,465,6771 Month of March, 1928 4,281,032 7.687,503 Month of March, 1927 4,692,209 6,450,442 * Pecrea: ?e in 1928. t Increase in 1028.