CUSTOMS RETURNS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5662, 23 May 1879, Page 3

CUSTOMS RETURNS.

A P.E'XtJitN of the Customs at the several ports of New Zealand during the quarter ended tho 31st of March, 1879, was published in a “ Gazette” on Thursday last, and yesterday we reprinted a few of tho figures relating to the larger centres of commerce. To-day wo purpose dealing with tho subject at a little greater length, for these periodical returns are valuable not only for the information which they bear on their face, but also for a great deal which a careful perusal of them suggests. Moreover, comparatively few people see the “ Now Zealand Gazette.” The total Customs Revenue at ail the ports, for the quarter ended 31st March, 1879, amounted to £348,500, as against £339,024 for the corresponding period in 1878, thus showing a falling off of £10,524. The following table gives the amount collected under the various headings for each quarter, and for convenience we have also shown tho increase or decrease, as the case may bo, opposite the separate items ;

At three of the four principal ports—namely, Auckland, Lyttelton, and Dunedin—there has been some falling off, amounting in the case of Lyttelton to the comparatively large sum of £5724, but no one will suppose for a moment that there is at any of these places a real tendency to lose ground. At theremaining one of the four—Wellington—the return for the March quarter of the present year shows an increase on the corresponding period of 1878 of £6277. The only part of the colony in which, wo fear, the return must be taken as positive evidence of decay is the. West Coast of the Middle Island. Westport • falls from £2717 to £2071, being a decrease of £646 ; Greymouth from £9479 to £5812, a decrease of £3667; and Hokitika frorn£67s4 to £4402, a decrease of £2352. It is true that in two or three districts on the Coast a very fair proportion of gold is still being obtained, blit the population is declining, trade is nearly at a '‘standstill, insolvencies are of daily occurrence, laud sales have almost ceased, agriculture is neglected, and laborers find it so difficult to obtain work that only a few weeks ago many able-bodied’ men were glad to avail themselves of the Government offer of free passages to other parts of the colony. The - railway works at present in course of construction. will serve to keep sortie of those who remain on the Coast from absolute want during the winter, and there is" room for hoping that fresh discoveries of gold may bring back to Hokitika and Greymouth some part of their former prosperity. Notwithstanding the great depression now prevailing, and which the returns before us plainly point to, there can be little doubt that many rich leads still remain hidden ; for comparatively only a very small portion of the auriferous districts of Westland have as yet been even prospected. In one district, Totara, enormously rich deposits are known to exist, and will be worked as soon as the Mikonui water-race is constructed. Railway communication with the east would in time do much to develop the resources of the West Coast by giving ;a ready market for timber and coal, but years must elapse before such a work can by any possibility be completed.

We recently referred to the increase and decrease in the Customs revenue received at the different ports of Now Zealand during the past quarter. We propose now to consider the subject by the light of the information to be derived from an analysis of the returns for the year ending 31st March, 1879. We are indebted to the “ Wellington Monthly Price Current” for the following table, which gives the information we require, and shows the Customs revenue received at the different New Zealand ports during the years ending 31st March, 1878 and 1879

From tho above table it appears that during the past twelve months there has been an increase in the Customs collected at all the chief ports. That by far the greatest increase has been in Wellington, which heads the list with £22,289, Lyttelton and Auckland coming next with over seventeen thousand pounds each. Although tho increase during the twelve months ending 31st March last amounted to £59,975, there has been a decrease of Customs revenue during the first quarter of 1879, as compared with the same period of 1878, amounting to £10,524, so that the growth in tho revenue shown by the above table has probably ceased, and if the present falling off continues, when the returns at the end of the financial year are _ made up, the excess of revenue over-estimated must bo greatly diminished. It is therefore unlikely that the Customs revenue for the year will be so large as might reasonably be anticipated from a consideration of the above table alone, without making due allowance for the recent change shown by the latest returns for tho first quarter of 1879. However, Wellington has hitherto kept up her trade ; the increase during the past quarter in her Customs revonue.of £6227 is a full proportion of the whole increase during the year, especially when the redaction of the duties on tea and sugar, which first commenced on the Ist of January, is taken into account. The decrease in the revenue derived from the West Coast ports unfor-

tunately bears out the returns shown in the quarter’s revenue, as the receipts have come down from £87,000 in 1877-78 to £65,700 in 1878-79. The purchasing power of the colony as a whole has diminished so greatly, owing to the low pr : ce obtainable for our staple products wool and grain, that we look forward to a considerable reduction in the imports throughout the colony. The low prices ruling for manufactured goods in England, especially for hardware and textile fabrics, would stimulate speculation so long as trade prospects in New Zealand were at all hopeful. The past quarter’s returns, as compared with those for the year, show that at Auckland, Lyttelton, and Dunedin the Customs revenue is rapidly declining, and we incline to the belief that Wellington returns will exhibit a similar falling off daring the present quarter. The busy season is now over, tho wool ships have come and gone, and in tho face of the commercial depression which has lasted during the past three or four months, orders for imports from England were sure to be given with tho utmost moderation. In fact, a glance at the Wellington wharf will show that trade is very dull now as compared with a few months back. From an examination of the returns before us, and from a consideration of the fact that the monetary tightness in the colony has not yet had time to exercise its full influence upon the import trade, we are led to believe that the Customs revenue for the present quarter will show a considerable falling off. If this surmise be correct, the surplus of Customs revenue over the estimated amount shown by the returns recently published may bo greatly reduced by the end of the financial year. The following table shows the revenue derived from the principal classes of imports during the years ending March 31st, 1878 and 1879

The decrease of £9OOO in the revenue derived from duty on sugar took place during the past quarter, and was attribut, able to the remission of duty. The same cause would also affect the revenue from tea, but this fact does not appear in the last quarter’s returns. This anomaly is probably owing to the fact that importers held back consignments in order to take advantage of the reduction in duty, and that iu consequence the imports during the first quarter of 1879 include a considerable quantity of tea held over from the last quarter of 1878. An examination of the other items shows a large increase of revenue—nearly £25,000 —from the tobacco; wine, beer, and spirits imported, fetching the revenue derived from these items alone, up to the astounding total of £618,164, equal to about £1 9s. per head of population, and to nearly half of the entire Customs revenue. In addition to this there is a considerable revenue derived from excise duty levied on beer and spirits made in the colony. We have not time to devote any further consideration to this branch of the subject at present, but hope to revert to it in a future issue.

1379. 1878. Inc. Dec. £ £ £ £ 83,275 89,223 62 Spirits (New Zealand! 735 858 4.809 31.805 33,826 Tobacco (shecpwash) 32 79 WIno .. 10,630 Ale, beer, &c (bottled) 8.133 5,903 2,230 Do (in wood) 1,152 1,682 630 21,457 21.457 18 Coffee, cocoa .. 2,193 2,134 59 Coffee (roastetl) 19 19 Sugar ami molasses.. 27.821 30.821 9,000 703 723 Goods by weight 22,347 21,667 680 Ad Valorem, 10 p.c 112,851 117,255 4,404 Other duties not speciflcd 14,340 12,043 1,097 Total .. 318,500 359,024 5,815 10,339 The followin'' table gives a list of the several ports in the colony, the amounts paid at each during the March quarter of 1878 and 1879 respectively, and the increase or decrease at each as the case may be :— March March quarter. quarter, Increase Deere se 1879, 1878. £ £ £ £ 59.745 60.098 353 1.792 2,258 4G0 225 235 10 . 117 82 35 Hokianga 724 458 266 Kaipara .. 290 22 Taurahga 589 410 179 Poverty Bay 2.181 3.239 1,053 New Plymouth 2,014 2,618 290 Wanganui 0,770 0,403 313 Wellington. 59.028 52,751 0,277 Napier .. 9,512 10,678 1,108 Wftirau -. 1,379 1,397 18 Picfcon 218 252 34 Havelock.. 202 265 03 Kaikoura ISO 238 58 Nelson .. 9.945 10.684 739 Westport 2,071 2.717 640 ffreymouth 6,912 9.479 3,667 Hokitika.. 4,402 C.754 Ljttelton 00,122 65.846 6,724 Akaroa .. nil. nil. Timaiu .. 4.200 5.120 Dll Oainaru .. 435(5 3,990 300 100,163 101.789 1,026 Invercargill 10,740 10,421 325 .Riverton .. 802 759 43 Chatlmms i

Ports. 1878-0. 1877-S. Increase and Decrease. Dunedin Lyttelton Auckland Wellington .. .. Invercargill .. Napier .. ■ • Nelson .. IVestpt., Greymouth, and Hokitika Other ports .. £ 369,731 231,737 224,034 207,093 44,721 40,682 35,430 05,714 111,790 £ 369,412 217,124 207,211 184,804 36,201 40,900 34,099 86,939 97,173 £ Inc. 319 „ 17,613 „ 17.423 „ 22,289 ., 8,520 Deo. 318 Inc. 731 Deo 21,225 Inc. 14,623 Totals .. | 1,834,438 1,274,463 Inc. 8l,51S Dec 21.543 Not Increase .. 50,075 59,975

Imports. 187S-9. 1877-78. Increase and Decrease. Spirits .. Tobacco, Cigars, and Snuff £ 393,478 £ 378,230 £ Inc. 15,248 152,902 151,305 i,es7 Wine and Beer 71,694 63,726 .. 7,968 80,096 89.J6S Dec. 8,172 1X9,184 123,374 „ 9,190 Goods by weight .. 93,215 77,831 Inc. 15,384 360,274 338,961 „ 21,313 Other duties.. 62.605 46,868 „ 15,737 Totals .. 1,334,438 1,274.463 Inc. 77,337 Dec 17,302 Net Increase .. 59,975 59,075