TWO MILLION LOAN.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 1470, 9 November 1915, Page 2

TWO MILLION LOAN.

EARGEEY OVERSUBSCRIBED.

STATEMENT BY SIR JOSEPH WARD.

The New Zealand loan of ,£2,000,000, applications for which closed on Saturday, has been largely over-subscribed. Sir Joseph Ward, Minister tor Finance, told a Post reporter that the applications amounted to £3,374,745, and there had yet to come to hand from different parts of the country applications bearing Saturday’s postmark, which, he thought, would amount to another £IOO,OOO, a total of ,£3,474,745. In addition applications for the conversion of loans falling due up to the end of November totalled ,£469,850, and as the right of conversion would continue until the end of November, this would probably account for another ,£IOO,OOO under the heading. Including the £469,850 mentioned the amount in applications was therefore £3,944,595. The conversion of the £469,850 indicated that the holders of loans maturing this year were willing to renew their loans on the terms of the new loan. He could not say anything about the individual applications, but the transfers from the Post Office Savings Bank amounted to £230,670, which was evidence that there had been a number of small applications. “I regard the result as exceedingly satislactory,” said Sir Joseph Ward, “especially as the loan is not for actual war purposes. Had it been for war purposes there would no doubt have been even many more applications. The loan should not appeal to sentiment, but only with the hard, every-day business side of the country, and I have no doubt was so regarded by the public. The response should have a thoroughly reassuring effect upon financial institutions throughout the country. The loan is largely over-subscribed, and the country has fully responded to the requirements of the Government. The aggregate sum shows that investors have considerable money to spare outside of their ordinary, every-day business.” Sir Joseph added that the duty of allotting the loan under the Act devolved upon the Comptrol-ler-General, and could not be completed lor a few days, because the rest of the applications posted to the Treasury would have to be awaited.