EXPANDING ISLAND TRADE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1036, 27 January 1911, Page 2

EXPANDING ISLAND TRADE.

(By TelcEraph— Special Corrrenondent.) '. Auckland, January 26. , For some months nast the Union Company's steamers calling at Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga, have been quite unable to handle the" large shipEients called for by Island importers (writes the. Sanioan correspondent of the "Hurald"). In fact,large quantities of freight- have customoriiv been left behind on the wharves of the company after the vessels had com-. pleted their lading, this to the great disappointment of our local merchants, lnsuilicient Space has provided, for direct quantities of copra, -that would naturally have reached Sydney direct, have been transhipped via Auckland. To keep .up .with the quick" march of progress the' Union Company has continuously retired their smaller boats and replaced them with vessels of larger sizeships which were looked upon, as altogether beyond the needs of the trade when they were first put on the Island run, but which ill practice have been found' to be ■ inadequate to supply" "the required space. In the. same ratio the passenger accommodation has been enlarged and improved, and it is indeed doubtful to-day if. a better and cheaper service in this direction is to be found in any part of the world. It is now announced that tho Australian' Hail Line will compete for a share of this carrying trade, and that this company will cariy a limited number' of passengers.' The cause of the heavy freight. shipments is largely due to the advancing prices of copra, and the Island products which places. the planters and the dealers largely in funds, and also (and almost without exception) the prosperous planter is enlarging his estate to the extreme limit of his means. While Sydney has especially reaped tha advantage of this, growing trade, Ivow Zealand has failed to obtain her propel sharo.of it owing to several caused Hitherto Sydney never has been able to compete with Auckland in the salt-beet trade, but it is doing so now. .Generally New Zealand tinned meats are preferred throughout : the Islands, but of late, it has been quite impossible to buy in sufficient quantities in Auckland which, isthe natural depot for shipment. As arrangements are being made to seek for tinned meats farther south, it is likely that the market will soon bo better supplied. Up till now" very little tinned meat has been sent cither to Tonga or Samoa ■from Sydney, while the price in Australia has, as a rule,.been lower than the Auckland ratio. The quality delivered lias invariably been- deemed "by the native population inferior to the New Zealand goods. In their desire to keep up supplies the traders have done all they could do to introduce Australian products, but so far, with very little success.