TRADING WITH GERMANY

Southland Times, Issue 23379, 10 December 1937, Page 12

TRADING WITH GERMANY

What New Zealand Buys CAMERAS, CLOCKS AND ACCORDIONS The Government’s announcement of a trade treaty with Germany recalls that German trade used to figure prominently in New Zealand statistics. During the war it fell away, and even now the amount and value of goods exchanged are not large, states The Press, Christchurch. The balance last year was in Germany’s favour considerably. New Zealand bought £748,374 worth of German goods, and in return Germany bought only £264,745 worth of New Zealand products, of which wool constituted practically all. By the trade treaty, reductions are made in the tariffs on certain German goods, and in return for her wool, and perhaps butter, New Zealand will receive more piano-accor-dions, mouth organs, cameras and clocks, etc. Except perhaps in musical instruments, the New Zealand public may notice very little difference in the retail prices of German goods coming within the scope of the treaty, according to the opinions of importers in Christchurch. They cannot be sure yet about the full effect of the provisions, but it appears that pianoaccordions, mouth organs and clocks are most likely to be the articles in which the trade will develop. In musical instruments. particu-

larly, a big increase in imports is anticipated. A Christchurch firm has the agency for a great German firm of musical instruments makers which produces 25,000,000 musical instruments a year, and with the reduced tariff very few Continental instruments other than those made by this firm may be able to compete on the New Zealand market. This is not including pianos, most of which come from Britain. New Zealand incidentally, bought £112,683 worth of musical instruments last year from overseas countries. GOODS IMPORTED Germany stands high on the list of overseas countries from which New Zealand buys goods. Outside the British Empire, the only country selling more to New Zealand than Germany does are Japan, the United States of America, nd the Dutch East Indies. The value of goods bought overseas last year was £44,134,326. Of the selling countries, the principal ones were: £(N.Z.) United Kingdom 21,852,347 United States 5,525,431 Australia 4,941,313 Canada 3,325,692 Dutch East Indies 1,722,802 Japan 1,328,199 Ceylon 750,982 Germany 748,347 India 554,102 Belgium 409,102 NEW ZEALAND’S SALES New Zealand sells to Germany principally wool, of which approximately 23,000 bales were bought by German woollen manufacturers last year. The export of butter to Germany last year was negligible. The statistics, in fact, show “nil” against this item. In 1932 Germany bought 18,000 hundredweight of New Zealand butter, and in 1933 the sales fell to 2000 hundredweight. Since then the German people

have apparently not tasted one pound of New Zealand butter.

The statistics show that Germany’s imports from New Zealand have been far from constant in their quantity and value. The German Government has in the past made block treaties with various countries, in some years taking quite a large volume of primary products from New Zealand, and in others a very small one. Last year the trade balance was approximately £400,000 in Germany’s favour. The principal countries to which New Zealand sold its produce last year were: ~ £ ( N .Z.) United Kingdom 45,492,989 United States 2,831,288 France 1,64b,150 Australia 1,61?, 866 Japan Canada 1,°?8,??7 Belgium 613,110 Germany 264,745 Poland 173,159