AUSTRALIAN TRADING ACCOUNT
•? ' EXPORT MARGIN OVER IMPORTS: .£13,857,027. The trading account of the Commonwealth for tho year which ended on J.uiie 30 was a record one in two directions. The valuo of Australian exports, incCuding gold, reached the high-water mark of i! 112,645,347, but while this is a matter for; considerable gratification, it is far from satisfactory to find that tJio imports for the same pc-riod reached a total value of .£98,791,320, or only ,£13,857,027 less than tho value of the year's exports. Moreover, a comparison with tho figures for previous years discloses the disquieting fact that, although the volume of exports lias greatly increased, the margin of difference between the value of tho country's exports and imports has grown considerably less. For instance, in the year 1916-17, when the value of Australian exports totalled ,£97,955,482, tho import? for the twelve months were valued at .£76,2-23,679, which was ;E21,72fi,803 less than the value of tho exports. In the year 1917-18 the exports from the Commonwealth represented a value of .£75,035,222, and the imports ,£00,822,164, ii difference of .£14,213,058, In regard to both the value of exports and imports, the figures for the year 1916-17 were the highest on record prior to last year. The official figures supplied by the .Minister of Customs of exports and imports for the year which ended on .Tune 30, are as follow:—
. Exports. Imports. & & . Victoria 27,856,153 38,771,810 N T cw South Wal;s 50,401,995 43,857,359 Queensland 12,447,343 0,076,761 South Australia 11,517,270 6,336,554 West. Australia 9,443,521 3,M0,556 Tasmania 982,060 608,780 Totals .£112,648,347 «,791,320 F,xcess valuo of exports over imports, -£13,857,027. Commenting ui tho above figures, the Sydney "Daily Telegraph" says:—'The exports of tho Commonwealth for tho past year constitute a record, totalling a value of over ,£112,000,000. That is more than four times tho amount of tho Peace Loan which has now to bo subscribed. T'io boom figures are due to tho abnormally high prices obtained in oversea markets for our leading lines rather than to increased production. Hence the margin of profit mnsi; have been exceptionally large. If further proof of this were wanting it would only 'be necessary to turn to tho daily Stock Exchange reports,'which show quite a boom in giltedged investments. Under these conditions the subscription of the .£25,000,000 ought to bo assured without any need to threaten peoplo who cannot afford gilt-edged investments with pains and penalties if they fail to become stockholder.?.' To those with capital by them as a mere investment the loan is specially attractive. But even were they to sacrifice a decimal or so in the percentage return it-would be nothing out of tho way to expect them to do-so cheerfully. The loan is required to assist in repatriating tho men who sacrificed everything for the country's defence By that sacrifice they materially helped in winning tho war, without which victory the whole of tho .£112,000,000 received for last year's exports would have been confiscated by Germany. And the fortunate owners of tho goods sold, instead of now creating an investment boom with the surplus profits, would be slaving for the rest of their lives to pay a German indemnity. To ask so small a part of their wealth from them at such high interest in aid of the men who gave uip everything to assist in saving the 1 whole is a request that can only be regarded as astonishing in its moderation,
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Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 283, 26 August 1919, Page 5
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566AUSTRALIAN TRADING ACCOUNT Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 283, 26 August 1919, Page 5
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