REDUCED DRAPERY PRICES ORDERED

Chronicle (Levin), 6 July 1946, Page 5

REDUCED DRAPERY PRICES ORDERED

-Press Association

BUT WHOLE S ALERS JJOLD UP SUPPLIES

By Telegraph-

CHRISTCHURCH, July 5. j An automatic reduction of 2|- per ' C'Spt, jn the wholesale price of almost every drapery line in the Dominion, [ came into force on July 1 as the resul-t ! of a special order by the Pfice Tri-i bunal. The order, the issue of which j was confirmed -today hy the otfice of [ the Price Tribunal in Christchurch (al-! though it has not yet been made pub-j lic) has met with considerable opposi- j tion from warehouses and is operative ; mostly in theory at present because j warehouses are refusing to send out j goods affected by the order, both in , Christchurch and Dunedin. A confer- j ence to discuss the position which hasj arisen is to be held in Wellington! among representatives of manufactur- j ers, wholesalers and retailers, the Prime Minister and Minister of Indus- ; tries and Commerce. The office of the 1 Price Tribunal in the city today would not make available for publication -a :

copy oi the schedule of ltems affected. j It is known, however, that it includes more than 100 headings and covers almost every drapery item except furnishings, floor coverings and knitting wools. Almost every line of clothing is affected. t It was stated at the Price Thibiuial office that the public would receive the benefit of the reduction since retaile?F margins of profits, based on the wholesdle cost, would automaticaily follow the reduction trend. "We have heard something of the kind," was the reply to a question as to.whether the office of the Price Tribunal had heard of the action of the warehousemen in refusing to send out goods affected by the new order. Most, price orders are gazetted and thus automaticaily made public but this newest one setting a general reduction, followed a different procedure. What happened was that warehousemen were advised that as from June 17 all stocks arriving later than that ' date would bear a 2 J per cent. reduction on the automatic price mark schedule, and as from July 1 every item covered in the schedule would carry the same reduction. The advice came in a circular from the Price Tribunal head office in Wellington.