Trade Missions To Come From U.K.

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30958, 14 January 1966, Page 10

Trade Missions To Come From U.K.

Three important trade missions, and possibly five, from the United Kingdom were expected to visit Christchurch this year, said the British Trade Commissioner in the South Island (Mr P. C. Burdett) yesterday.

A mission from the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry was expected to arrive in Christchurch on February 3. Its 15 members would be the guests of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce and the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association the same evening. News was received in Christchurch yesterday, said Mr Burdett, that the Manchester Chamber of Commerce might also send a mission. At the moment Manchester was asking when it would be suitable. ”We told them it might conflict with the London Chamber of Commerce.” said Mr Burdett. “It takes some time to prepare these things.” Apart from these three missions, he said, there were two others . The British Electrical and Allied Manufacturers’ Association wanted to send mission when the Queen Mother was here, said Mr Burdett. “We told them they could not,” he said. “We expect the mission will be coming out towards the end of May or June, but that is all to be confirmed.” Mr Burdett said he had heard that if this mission did come it would consist of nine members. There would be experts in switch gear, transformers, nuclear plants, power plants, telecommunication, cable engineering, and application engineering. The fifth trade mission from the United Kingdom, said Mr Burdett, was a Machine Tool Trades’ Association mission. It proposed to come in June this year. He did not have many details of this mission. but it was planning to come to New Zealand and Australia. The Birmingham mission

due next month, said Mr Burdett, would stay at the White Heron Hotel. Its members were mostly manufacturers from the Midlands. The mission would arrive in Christchurch by air from Wellington on February 3.

The only official engagement in Christchurch would be the reception at the Chamber of Commerce Hall on the day of arrival. The following day the mission would be out to get orders, and the emphasis would be on selling during the mission’s stay in New Zealand. Mr Burdett said it was hoped that the mission members would have many appointments to see people in their own particular spheres of interest. Some members ’ represented organisations that already had agents in ! Christchurch, but others he understood wished to appoint agents in Christchurch. On February 5 the Birmingham mission would leave for Mount Cook, and would later visit the Benmore power station and Dunedin. The leader of the Birmingham mission is the export sales manager of Imperial Metal Industries, Ltd. (Mr H. Baskerville) and the mission’s secretary is the senior assistant secretary of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Mr J. Warburton). Mr Burdett said he would travel to Dunedin to help to expedite business appoint-1 ments and other arrange-i meats for the mission there.!