COMPANY AFFAIRS

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 November 1949, Page 8

COMPANY AFFAIRS

NORTH AND SOUTH B.il. DIVIDENDS ANNUL NCJLD Half-yearly dividends have been announced by North .broken Hilt Ltd. and Broken Hill South Ltd. as follows: North Broken Hili Ltd.: Interim, half-year, 4/- a share, or 80 p.c. (last year, interim 2/6, final 3/6, total 6/-, or 120 p.cj; payable Dec. 20, ex Nov. 8. Broken Hill South Ltd.: Interim, half-year, 4/- a share, or 80 p.c. (last year, interim 4/-, final 2/6, total 6/6 or 130 p.c.); payable Dec. 20, ex Nov. 8. The annual meetings of both companies were held in Melbourne on Friday. United States lead consumption had increased by 88 per cent, since 1938, said Mr. M. H. Baillieu, chairman of North Broken Hill, Ltd., and the demand seemed likely to be at a reasonably high level for many years. For the last three years the United States had accounted for 56 per cent, of the world consumption of lead and 51 per cent, of zinc. Its domestic production amounted to 33 per cent, and 47 per cent, respectively of world totals. Though demand had slackened in recent months, reports were encouraging about the long-term outlook, said the chairman. Of the total lead produced at Port Pirie by B.H. Associated Smelters in the year enaded June 30. 76 per cent, was exported. Of this. 75 petrent. went to Britain and 21 per cent, to the United States. The average price for overseas sales was £122, compared with £97 the previous year. Increase in the Australian price from £22 to £35 a ton brought no net gain because of the substantial increase in the local consumption. The price was not raised sufficiently to restrict the use of lead for purposes considered uneconomic in the rest of the world, or to prevent large-scale hoarding of scrap. In both England and the United States, scrap amounted to more than 40 per cent, of the lead used. Tn Australia. It was probably less than 10 per cent. This deprived the sterling area of a substantial means of earning or saving dollars. Expenditure on both plant and development thus year would be heavy, and £750,000 had been appropriated for this purpose.