DIRECT SHIPS WANTED

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 561, 14 January 1929, Page 10

DIRECT SHIPS WANTED

ADVANTAGES OF LIVERPOOL FRUIT AND PRODUCE TRADE The port of Liverpool, England, wants more business. There are many advantages to Australian and New Zealand producers if they send their produce to Liverpool instead of the Liverpool merchants having to buy through London. More direct boats from this side of the world to Liverpool is what that port desires. And that is what has brought Mr. R. Watson Rome to New Zealand. He is representing the Liverpool Produce and Fruit and United Trades Association, and has just toured the principal parts of Australia, putting Liverpool’s advantages before the men he met. Mr. Rome states that there is a greater need for more refrigerated vessels for the carriage of fruit and other primary produce. GOOD FRUIT MARKET Liverpool consumes twice as much fruit as is consigned direct to the port, and the sale of fruit in one auction room, such as is at Liverpool, and which is in the hands of experienced and capable brokers, is the only way for proper trade relations between Liverpool and Australia to be strengthened. Larger shipments of produce should be sent direct to Liverpool than is the case at present. The bulk of trade goes to London, Tlull procuring a fair amount, then Liverpool, but the share of the last-mentioned city is only about a quarter of the volume of the whole of the trade; whereas, according to Mr. Ro-*ie, it should be much larger. Liverpool buyers are not keen on fruit that has been in and out of storage two or three times, as happens to fruit that is shipped to London, and then ti'ansported to the outports. The trouble with Australia is that it has become accustomed to shipping to one particular port; it has become a habit that is hard to break away from, and Australia cannot make up her mind to properly decentralise her trade. It is the only country that has not done so. The direct importation into Liverpool of cheese and butter from Canada has fallen off during the past 12 months, but the consumption at Liverpool is just the same. There was nothing to prevent Australia from procuring that ti-ade. If Austi'alia will not grasp the opportunity, said Mr. Rome, then Liverpool would be forced to look toward the Argentine and the Continent. PRODUCE IMPORTATIONS One firm in Liverpool took 10,000 boxes of butter in six months from London: another firm, 8,000 crates of cheese and 4.500 boxes of butter, and also distributed a lai'ge quantity direct from London. Still another firm, though it received 9.000 boxes of butter at Liverpool, had to purchase 7,000 boxes from London in order to fulfil requirements. Of 78.000 tons of colonial cheese and butter imported into the northern area last year, only 20,000 tons were sent direct to Liverpool. Last year 86,000 tons -of butter and cheese were used

in the northern area.: in the year before, 92.000 tons, and 120,000 in the year before that. Of these amounts' only about 20,000 tons cam© direct Liverpool each year. Why was this? London cannot be the better market, said Mr. Rome. It seems that the goods were just sent there to be later redistributed to the other districts and i markets. About £45,000 was spent in | unecessary rail charges. If it were I possible to cut out those rail charges Iby shipping direct to the outports. j surety Australian and New Zealand I exporters would gain in some way or other. The Dominion exporters, contin- | ued Mr. Rome, have the power to choose the port to which their products should be shipped, so why not avail themselves of the advantages to b§ gained by sending direct to the outports? The overseas value of trade of the United Kingdom in 1926 was £2,079.926,624, of which London received £719,206.103. and Liverpool £ 522,593,989. The imports into the United Kingdom accounted for £124,361,277, London taking £ 4 i 8,b44,07S and Liverpool £245,974.863. Exports from the L'nited Kingdom were £653,046.909. London sending £145,855,558 and Liverpool £239.529.595. But what Mr. Rome would like to see is direct shipments from Australia and New Zealand to Liverpool, say one steamer a month for a start. He feels sure that if such a movement was put under way. next season two steamers a month would be required to meet the demand of exporters. The approximate population of the area that could be served by Liverpool, Manchester and Hull was 20.296,000, while that' of London was 17.799,000. There was a difference there of about 3,000.000, and to the advantage of the outports, concluded Mr. Rome, so wl 1 neglect the bigger market?