CANTERBURY FARMERS’ CO-OP

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 499, 31 October 1928, Page 14

CANTERBURY FARMERS’ CO-OP

BETTER FINANCIAL POSITION TJMARU, Tuesday. The 35th annual meeting of the Canterbury Farmers' Co-operative Association was held to-day. Mr. K. Mackenzie, chairman of directors, said the trading profit for the year was £19,161. As indicating the improvement in finance he said the liability to the bank and depositors in 1923-24 was £698,544, compared with £427,826 in 1927-28. a decrease in four years of £270,718. The past year’s working showed a decrease of £3,000 in expenses, chiefly salaries and overdraft interest, and an increase in earnings of £6,800. In the past four years deposits had been reduced by almost half. Thfe report and balance sheet were adopted. The meeting agreed to alter the articles of associtaion to provide for a reduction in the number of directors from 12 to 9. 5 to represent the depositors and 4 the shareholders, the directors to be paid an aggregate of £1,200 a year. In order to stabilise the financial position and restore the assoeiation to a divi-dend-paying basis the directors recommended writing down all ordinary and preference shares by 25s each. The ordinary and C and D preference shareholders agreed to the proposal, but the A and B preference shareholders rejected it. The matter as far as the two latter arrQups are concerned will come up for reconsideration.