BRITISH TRADE

Hokitika Guardian, 2 January 1930, Page 2

BRITISH TRADE

YEAR’S OPERATIONS. HEAVY LOSSES DEPRESS MARKETS. [United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.] LONDON, Dec. 28. The financial writers,- summing up 1929, are almost unanimously dismal, and only a few of them show much inclination to be optimistic regarding 1930. To quote one authority. ‘‘The past year has not been good, either in the financial or the business world. Industry has languished, exports have shown a small decrease, even compared with the unsatisfactory figures of 1928, while the losses sustained by financial institutions through failures in one direction or another, to say nothing of losses suffered by the public through tiie fall in share values, probably have been greater than for many years past.” There is, however, one writer uho holds out a little ray of hope for 1930. The “Economist” says: “The Stock Exchange, though still overhung by a cloud of uncertainty till the Hatrv settlements have been completed, so far has weathered not only the domestic storm but also the depression from across the Atlantic which came with cyclonic force. In the financial world we faced and met a crisis which threatened even to endanger the gold standard in this country, but the Bank of England, at the critical moment, took a course as bold as it was successful, and the year closes with confidence that money will go still cheaper and that Great Britain’s monetary position in regard to gold need cause no anxiety.”

NEW CAPITAL ISSUES. An illustration of the unsatisfactory year the Stock Exchange has had is given in the returns of the year’s new capital issues in London, which show a reduction of £84,000,000 compared with 1928, although the total for that year was exceptionally high altogether; New' issues for 1929 totalled £285,000,000, compared with £369,000,000 last year and £355,000,000 in 1928. Of this year’s issues £198,000,000 were for the United Kingdom, including £65,400,000 of Government borrowing, while British possessions issued £61,000,000 of which £26,809,000 was for Governments. Foreign countries issues amounted to £26,200,000. Comnierrting on these figures the “Economist” states. “Investors innew issues, even of % highest class, have seen holdings in a number ,of instances*' serious depreciation. Tile prospect of comparatively cheap money ip 1930 encourages the hone /that sound borrowers at least (able in the near future to ssueis on the London market ei-s terms and w'ith more us chances of success. It is iqWever, that the progress of g‘ activity on the new issue as a whoie is likely to be slow ■ public, after the experience insound boom in 1928, is liheome time to exercise eonsidersdrimination between offers.”