H.—lB.

6. The movement in food-prices abroad as compared with that in New Zealand Food-prices, is shown in the following table :—

Table 16. —Index Numbers of Food Prices, 1890 to 1911. (Base 1890-99 = 100.)

Our course of food-prices ? has lagged behind thatjof all the other~countries*except the United France, but has shown some abrupt movements]* during the last ten years, due partly to tariff changes. A noticeable feature of the table is the comparatively small rise in France ; no complete explanation of this fact has come under the notice of the Commission, though it has been suggested that it is associated causally with the prevalence of peasant properties in France and the greater percentage *of the people who grow their own food. Both France and Germany are protective.countries, so that we mustjook for some'explanation of the difference elsewhere than to their fiscal policies. It would appear that in so far as the cost of living is measured by changes in the wholesale prices of food, the New Zealand cost has not increased to the same extent as the cost in America, Canada, Germany, and Trieste. The Official Year-book of New South Wales for 1911, pages 705-7, gives average wholesale prices'at Sydney of % certain foodstuffs since 1904. The Commission has expressed these as index numbers in the following table : —

Table 17. —Wholesale Prices in New South Wales compared with 1904 taken as 100.

The general trend is upward, the food-prices showing an increase of 28 per cent., or, without potatoes, 17. A notable feature is the high rise in the price of beef. 7. The following table compares the level of food-prices for 1910 and 1911 with the level for" each of the two previous decades in six countries :—

Decade averages.

XXVII

Country. © OS 00 00 OS OS 00 CO os os 00 CO (0 CO 00 00 oo OS os X O r. © O OS Ol fM O OS CO ■* IO CD I- © O O O © OS OS OS OS OS 00* OS* © r-I © © rH r-t OS OS OS OS Jnited KingdomBoard of Trade Sauerbeck Jnited States America— Labour Bureau Janada— Coats "ranee— Hooker 1051 107 110 115 106 1112 112 116 115 111 107 107 104 104 103 105 105 110 105 104 99 96 98 96 99 96 94 96 92 90 9.1 83 88 88 94 95 90 88 95 98 99 96 96 103 94 95 100 97 97 96 101 106 100 98 97j 98 109 104 95 | 98 98 117 107 94 97 96 111 106 92 97 99 114 108 93 97 101 114 110 95 97101 101105 116124 114124 96104 112117 112119 106111 102 105 125 123 97 105 107 130 127 98 105 108 134 128 101 iio termany— Hooker 'rieste— Alberti few Zealand— Mcllraith .. 107 96 116 102 110 101 106 98 98 95 91 95 86 91 91 108 99 110 97 103 100 99 101 99 98 103 105 101 105 107 110 I 115 110 123 122 124 125 131 102 102 104 100 99 92 97 100 103 97 99 100 108 108 101 106 116 107 109 115

1904. 1905. 1906. Jl_ 1907. 1908. 1909 1910. 'arm and Dairy Produce — Wheat Flour Potatoes Butter Cheese Bacon 'astoral— Beef Mutton Wool 100 100 100 100 100 100 106* 80* 214* 125 137* 86* 101* 76* 218* 125 126* 100 120 88* 94* 122* 142* 118* 133* 96* 167* 153* 168* 125 149 111* 170 125 147* 121* 119* 98* 196* 144* 132* 107* 100 100 100 123* 87* 102* 108* 105* 111* 123* 84* 118 123* 84* 94* 154* 90* 88* 154* 105* 91 * Neai •est whole Lumber.