IMPORTERS’ FEDERATION

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19300, 29 September 1932, Page 3

IMPORTERS’ FEDERATION

FORMED AT DOMINION CONFERENCE.

By Telegraph—Press Association. WELLINGTON, September 28.

A conference of delegates representing the interests of importers from Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Wellington, was held this morning, to consider the desirability of forming a New Zealand Importers’ Federation. Mr Edwin Salmond (president of the Wellington Importers’ Association), who presided, in opening the Conference, said up to the present the importers had been nobody’s baby, and indeed almost seemed that a section of the public appeared to hold the view that importers were hardly, if at all necessary, whereas importers were an essential link in the chain of commerce. In point of fact, the importer acted as the expert buying agent for the general public. It might safely be asserted that the importer served the New Zealand public well. Proceeding, he said if one were called upon to point to one factor operating more strongly than any other to delay the lifting of the present world-wide depression, one would inevitably point to high tariffs. Signs were not wanting, however, that the world was beginning to realise their folly, and that before long the channels of trade would be open for traffic. It had been stated that the Government’s intention in raising the tariff walls was to obtain more revenue, but the effect had been the reverse of what was anticipated. It was cheering to learn from statements by the Premier and Mr Coates that the Customs Bill this week would embody reductions in duties on British goods, but he hoped that at the same time reductions would be made in the general tariff. Another matter outstandingly requiring their attention was the matter of exchange. He hoped the mo\ement in favour of artificial inflation of the exchange was dying. While formerly it would have been folly to inflate a month or two back, now in the light of the Ottawa agreement it would practically amount to cheating as it would be breaking the essence of the agreement.

With regard to preference to British goods, he said the question of the margin of preference should be most carefully considered. Was there not danger, if the margin was too great, that the New Zealand public might suffer without benefit to the British manufacturers as a whole? With regard to secondary industries, Mr Salmond said that importers were in no way antagonistic to those worth while, or, in other words, economically sound, but it seemed necessary to endeavour to define just what an economic industry was. He suggested that the definition was an industry which benefited the community as a whole. It was not enough that an industry should pay big dividends, and employ a certain number of people. It was quite possible to do these things at the expense of the rest of the cornunity. If they were successful in forming an Importers’ Federation, one of the first tasks should be to consider carefully the position of secondary industries —to give what assistance they could to those which benefited the whole community, and fight for lower tariffs on goods manufactured by secondary industries in the Federation’s opinion not economic. Concluding, Mr Salmond mentioned that when recently he told Mr Forbes they had formed a Wellington Importers’ Association, the Prime Minister was frank enough to say that resolutions from provincial associations rarely carried much weight with any Government, and Mr Forbes stressed the necessity of a New Zealand Federation, if it was desired to make its weight felt. The proceedings are not open to the Press. It was decided to form an importers’ federation, and delegates engaged in discussing the constitution.