TRADE WITH THE EAST

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19805, 22 May 1934, Page 2

TRADE WITH THE EAST

IMPORTANCE OF DIRECT ACCESS. The necessity for having direct access to the mo:t important markets in the East before New Zealand could hope to extend the present export for her goods was pointed out in a long report to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce by the exporters' section committee (reports the Auckland “Star”). The report stated that New Zealand’s difficulty was that Australia, which exported substantially the same commodities as New Zealand, had direct contact with practically every important part in the East.* Except in the case of Japan, all New Zealand’s exports to that part of the world had to be transhipped at Sydney, Honolulu, or Vancouver, and in case of shipments destined for most parts in India and Burma, a further transhipment was necessary at Colombo. This resulted in our commodities having to be loaded with transport charges to Sydney or wherever transhipment was effected, and as the East was essentially a price market New Zealand was out of the picture before she started unless she was prepared to accept the same price, f.o.b. Sydney, as the Australians, or was prepared to accept less for her goods to the extent of transport charges to Sydney.

There was still a small demand for quality goods in the East, for which a premium was obtainable, but the great bulk of the business offering hinged on price.

A suggestion had been made, the report proceeded, that some of the vessels which loaded here for the United Kingdom should go homewards via Singapore, Colombo, and Suez. This seemed to be the best suggestion that had been advanced, because such an itinerary would include Java (say, Sourabaya and Batavia), Singapore, Penang, Colombo (tranship there for Indian ports and Rangoon), Port Said (transhipment for the Eastern Mediterranean), a port in Italy, Marseilles, and on to London. In one hit it would give New Zealand direct access to large consuming markets, provided the best types of passenger steameis were used. Such a service would be immensely popular with the travelling public. “This Is an important factor,” stated the report, “because each port called at would be visited continually by large numbers of New Zealanders advertising our goods. At present a large percentage of homeward-bound passengers proceed via Sydney and Suez, and a much large proportion would travel by the route advocated because of its greater interest and also because no transhipment would be involved. In addition, passengers would transfer at Singapore for China and Japan,”