The Times WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1937. New Zealand's Wealth

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 34, 10 February 1937, Page 4

The Times WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1937. New Zealand's Wealth

The average private wealth of the 1,000,000 European citizens of New Zealand is £415 Os' Bd. The typical family of to-day in this Dominion consists of husband and wife with one child and the aggregate average wealth of .such a liouschoiu would amount to £1336.

The 1907 issue of the New Zealand Year Book contains a section giving information as to the national wealth. An explanation is given as to how it is arrived at and estimates o 1 public and private wealth of the Dominion are furnished.

The national wealth as in 1935 is set down at £380,000,000. This is made up of European private wealth £973,000,000 plus 4 per cent, for Maori citizens. The balance is the net value of public wealth after deduction of liabilities secured thereon.

It is of interest in the light oi recent disclosures as to living conditions in some districts to note that the average Maori citizen is possessed of as much wealth as his pakelia neighbours. It is evident from this that sheei poverty cannot be regarded as the root of the trouble.

The gross public wealth of the Dominion is set down at no less a sum than £342,000,000. This represents approximately £220 for each citizen. This is made up of property, such as railways, buildings, electric power plants and lines, roads, bridges, harbours, etc., also of advances and loans made to citizens by the State Advances Office and such like institutions.

There is, however, a substantial mortgage upon these assets —the sum of £162,000,000 owing hy the State and local bodies to overseas lenders. Deducting this liability leaves the public property as a net asset to the community of £180,000,000. approximately £llO per head. It may be said that our public property is mortgaged overseas to almost 50 per cent, of its value.

Turning once more to private wealth, the records indicate that the average man possesses more than two and oi!H-quart<'.r times the wealth of the average woman, men possessing £468,000,000 and women £205,000,000.

Another fact that emerges from the statistics given, irrelevant but arresting, is that there are only 56 persons under 21 years for each hundred over that age. Allowing that most marriages take place at about 27 years of age for the contracting parties and then taking into account that minors are no longer children in their late teens, it may be reasonably concluded that the people of this country have produced but one child per couple.

Poverty cannot be blamed for that, for according to statistics internationally collected and published at Geneva some few years ago New Zealanders were the wealthiest people per capita in the whole world. In these days when share-the-wealth advocates are loud in the land it is of value to examine the statistics of national wealth from the viewpoint of what it really means in income. Capital wealth is entirely different from income.

The average man of working age in this country earns about £6 weekly. That represents, say, £3OO per annum. Capitalised at 44 per cent., such an income represents a capital value of £5400. If the wealth of all the adult male citizens were shared out, those who now possessed nothing at all would receive only £706! That, returning 4J per cent., would add merely £3l 15s 2d to his annual income, approximately 12s 2id weekly!

It can be readily seen that dividing up the wealth taking from the “haves” to give to the “have-nots,” is no road to Easy Street.

The contrast between the average man’s capital wealth of £706 and his productive wealth of £5400 is most striking. This indicates, surely, whereto we must look to raise our standard of living. Only by work, wisely and efficiently managed and performed, can there be enough for all.

Casting envious eyes on what others possess will get us nowhere. If more be wanted, more must be produced.