“BUYERS’ NIGHTMARE”

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19373, 10 July 1937, Page 15

“BUYERS’ NIGHTMARE”

INCREASING PRICES COSTLY IMPORTED GOODS AVERAGE RISE 10 PER CENT (Special to the Herald.) WELLINGTON, this day. Within the next few months there will be substantial increases in the prices of many lines of imported retail goods in New Zealand, said representatives of several large business firms in Wellington when they were interviewed yesterday. In the main these increases will affect the cheaper grades of fancy goods, crockery, glassware, and fabric lines, imported largely for the Christmas ti-ade. “A buyer’s nightmare” was how a member of one firm described the situation.

Excluding the rises due to changing conditions within New Zealand, which have already taken place, the average increase in price will be about 10 per cent, although in some cases the increase will be very much greater. Already an order for fire shovels has been cancelled by one firm as the cost would have been about 65 per cent in excess of that of the previous consignment. Cotton and steel goods have risen from 10 to 15 per cent. This increase has not been shared by small synthetic articles such as bakelite jars or ornaments, as the improvement in manufacturing technique has tended to keep prices down. Two Main Reasons There are two main reasons for the rise in prices. The fitst is the higher wages now being paid to factory workers in England, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and even Japan. The second is the quickening demand for raw materials for armaments purposes. This is by no means confined to steel and other metals. Cloth is required for uniforms, rubber for tyres. The Governments requiring supplies are bidding strongly for what is available, and manufacturers requiring material must take their chance with what is left.

Some English firms are now refusing to quote delivery dates for orders and repeat orders can rarely be supplied at the original price. Buyers are wondering where some of their new stocks are coming from.

It was suggested that the present increase in Australian prices was an unwise move on the part of that country’s manufacturers. They had the raw material resources, and by keeping prices down with a Government subsidy on exports, they could surely take advantage of the world-wide high price level to capture a good slice of the world’s markets. A subsidy might turn out to be a very good investment for Australia. It is anticipated that as soon as present stocks are exhausted and prices rise, no decrease will take place for at least six months, probably not for a year. New Zealand can do nothing to bring the prices of these articles down. She must buy at prices fixed by manufacturers abroad.