THE MONEY MARKET

Hokitika Guardian, 27 June 1931, Page 6

THE MONEY MARKET

WHERE LONDON LEADS THE WORLD AND WHY. The London Money Market has long been recognised as the most comprehensive and highly organised of the World’s Money Markets. Strictly, it is not a single market at all, but a group of markets; lor it embraces the®discount, short-loan, acceptance, foreign exchange and new capital markets and its activities are closely linked with those of the Stock Exchange. Mr S. Metz, writing on “Money Markets Past .and Present’’,' says rr Tlie high standard of development- reached by the London Money Market long before there were any others in existence was not. an accident but the outcome of tile historical development of its economic activity- The Merchant Adventurers of early centuries laid toe foundation for London’s ultimate preponderance in the world ol commercial finance. .... . . The- London Money

Market is still the example for the rest of the world.” The real foundation of London as a Money Market, as indeed the very existence of London 'as a City, is the River Thames, described by an eminent public man as “liquid history.” Two thousand years ago and more, London, c'ame into existence, because of the advantages the site possessed' as a centre for the distribution and collection of overseas and inland traffic. This favourable geographical position pre-destined the growth and development of London into the greatest Port and Market of the world. Tile fact that London is at the centre of the world has been a material factor in its development because in earliest times the overland trade routes from the East crossed. Europe and converged on London. Even before tile arrival of the Romans in Britain, London had become an important trading centre. From it radiated trackways used by the early Britons because tlicf Thames provide a natural highway into the most advanced and fertile areas of the country. To-day. London, owing to its unique situation, is still the chief distributive base for tlie United Kingdom. London’s position as tlie greatest Port, Market and City in the World has been consistently st; engthenedi since the war by the development o industry on Thames-side and in the South of England, ft is estimated that more than a million-nnd-a-half people have been added to the population oi Greater London, during the past six years. Great Britain’s Food Supply. Writing on the Food Supply of Great Britain, the Rt. Hon. Winston Churchill, M.P. says: “For the purpose of dealing in Grain the world is a single unit and Great - Britain —incomparably the world’s largest purchaser of grain—stands at the centre and summit of that unit.”

“The leading Grain Markets in Britain are situated at the principal ports of entry. The London Market is tlie world’s largest grain buyer, both for Britain and Europe.” '

“London Corn Trade Association is a world-wide organisation; its contracts, designed specifically to cover imports from many and various sources of supply, are recognised and used by all countries.” •

“The Berth of a Nation ” Remarking upon the record tonnage of vessels that used the. Port of Londou last year, a contemporary writes : “London has again created a recoru as a Port. The Berth of a Nation ” Too Much Paper Used in Business. “It is my very definite opinion that there is far too much paper used in business at the present time.” “Paper costs money; it requires effort to fill it with infromation and a further effort still to look after it and file it. There is indeed much scope available for a periodic overhaul of all forms of record, and although it is unwise to geaieralise, l 1 would say that most, businesses of any magnitude could to-day dispense with anything up to 50 per cent of their records without suffering in the least degree.”

These are a few of the interesting observations made by Mr T. Haworth, F.S.M.A., the Chief Accountant of the Port of London Authority, in the course of a lecture in London to the Incorporated Secretaries’ Association.