DOMINION TRADE WITH HOMELAND

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 109, 1 February 1935, Page 3

DOMINION TRADE WITH HOMELAND

“In Consumers’ Own Interest” EXTENSION ADVOCATED BX TRADE COMMISSIONER “Although the volume of the Dominion’s trade with Great Britain during the past year or so has shown an upward trend, this has not been due to the general trade expansion, and taken all i*ound our percentage lias. I believe, shown practically no increase, though I have not yet seen the final figures for 1934. This is the position which we are desirous of changing, and it is our hope that New Zealand consumers may be brought to realise that it is in their own interests that trade between this country and the Homeland should increase.” >lt was,in these terms that Mr. Robert Boulter, his Majesty’s Trade Commissioner in New Zealand, spoke in a newspaper interview in' Dunedin this week. Mr. Boulter, who is at. present in the south to gain a .first-hand knowledge of conditions, added that from what he had already seen of New Zealand he was convinced that the general sentiment of the people was in favour of the British manufacturer. At the same time, he is of tlie opinion that there is a need for a greater knowledge of the full extent of what the British manufacturers are producing, and in this connection he stressed, the fact that it would be greatly to the benefit of both countries if more frequent visits could be made by New Zealand importers to Great Britain in order that they might keep themselves more fully informed of manufacturing conditions at Home. “I admit that Great Britain has secured about 50 per cent, of the New Zealand market,” he said, “but there is still room for considerable expansion, and I believe that much of this is due to the fact that the Dominion importers hardly realise the latest developments of industry in the United Kingdom. And it should always be remembered that in buying from Great Britain New Zealanders are increasing the buying power of their principal customer for primary produce.” Japanese Competition. When it was pointed out to him that Great Britain was experiencing keen competition from Japan, Mr. Boulter admitted that this was so, but said that this competition was not yet a vital factor in the trade of New Zealand. It was principally in the textile trade, he said, that the Japanese were making their strongest bid in the Dominion, and it was mainly in textiles of the, cheaper qualities. While the Japanese were quite capable of producing textiles of high grade, it was not this section of the trade, with its smaller orders, that -they were' at present securing, but rather the bulk orders for the cheaper qualities. Mr. Boulter explained that the Japanese export trade originally sprang up with China, and later with other Eastern countries such as India, Burma and Java, where ' the demand was mainly for the cheaper article, and it was in this direction that the Japanese exporters had made good progress. Still, he admitted that Japanese competition presented a. problem. He was not prepared to discuss what course the Dominion and British Governments should adopt in the matter, but he stated that in the Crown colonies and protectorates restriction had been imposed in the form of a quota upon certain textiles imported from foreign countries. Asked if he thought that the advantage which Japanese manufacturers enjoyed in their cheap labour might not be gradually lost through the rising standard of living in Japan, Mr. Boulter, who spent 20 years in Japan, said that he did not think that this would influence the position to any great extent for some time to come. To a certain degree the life of the people had already been Westernised, but this had not meant that the standard ofi living had been made dearer.

“Wages Not Only Factor.” As a mutter of fact, the cost of living had remained very much the same, and even the depreciation of the yen had not created a rising tendency to any noticeable extent.. Mr. Boulter added thkt the low rate of wages was not the only factor governing the pritfe at which the Japanese exporter could sell his manufactures in the world market. The progress of Japan was due also to a depreciated exchange, in combination with efficient labour and the adoption of modern equipment and mass production methods. Mr. Boulter concluded by saying that 1 the ihipression which had been gained in sopie countries that the Japanese were not an inventive race was not altogether correct. It was true that in their early history they had been more or less dominated by the more advanced civilisation of China, and that later they had copied Western methods, but several inventions -in modern industry were the work of Japanese. Despite this, he did not think that thqre was any truth in what had been said that the Japanese manufacturer was more modern in his methods than his British and American rivals.