INCREASED FREIGHTS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 250, 31 March 1915, Page 6

INCREASED FREIGHTS.

WHAT IS THE REASON?

•VIE INTERESTING FIGURES.

Auckland, Monday.

Exhaustive enquiries regarding the increase in freight rates, on cargo carried to and from New Zealand arc being made by the president of the Chamber of Commerce (Mr R. Burns) with a view to consideration of the matter by the Council.of the Chamber.

The latest increase in the freight from England is the third since the he ginning of the war. Mr. Burns remark e;l ttiat the shipping companies explain ed that these increases had been neces sitated by the cost of extra insuranc against war risks, by loss involved b; delays in loading cargo, and the incrcas cd cost incurred owing to the war h such items as coal, wages and provi sions. They stated that they wouli not be ab'e to meet these additional ex penses unless come corresponding in ercftse3 were made in freights. The following comparison betwec the rates ruling in July and the latcs tariffs was made by Mr. Burns :- Freights to New Zealand from London first-class dead weight: July, 1914, 22 (id, March, 1015, 38s fld; rough Measure ment, 45s and 62s Cd. An addition o 10 per cent, primage is made to al freights from London. From New York dead weight 17s (id and 755; first-clas; measurement, ' G2s fid and 105s. Rate; on produce shipped from New Zealant to London all bear a sur-charge of 2.' per cent. Mr. _ Burns remarked thathe rate for dead-weight cargo showec a much larger increase" than that foi measurement cargo no doubt becaus there was a very large quantity of carg< of the former class offering for ship ment. Mr. Burns said he had analyser the increase from the point of view o the earning capacity of a steamer o average capacity. He was informcf that the carrying capacity of such i steamer was approximately 12,000 ton of general cargo. The average increasi in the freights paid from London wnuli be about 17s per ton, to which must lii added the primage of 10 per cent., mak ing a total of £11.220 increase ove the tmount that would have been pait in freight on such a cargo in July. Tli average value of a homeward freight ii approximately £40,000, and an increasi of 25 per cent, on that amount, with out' considering the increase in the ratei for beef and mutton, would be £IO,OOO It therefore appeared that the averagi steamer would now cam £21,220 mori on the round voyage than before tl» war. "These figures are subject to re vision," Mr. Burns added, "but thc\ are approximately correct. In face ol them it looks as if some explanatior should bo given by the shipping companies to justify the imposition of sucr lame increases." The present position was also reviewad by Mr. Burns from the point of view af holders- of shipping shares. He said that the on!;,- company trading to Kngand whose'shares were dealt with in the New Zealand market was the New Zealand Shipping Company. In 1010 ihe value of their shares was approximately £lO. It was £l2 in 1011, £l4 n 1012, and from £ls 2s (id at tlie beginning of 1913, the shares rose fo ictween £l7 10s and ITS in December of that year. Subsequently the share tapital of the company was reorganised, ind solely as a result of the method idopted in reorganising the capital acount the value of the shares in July )f last year was £ls, and it-is now £ls 10s. "It is therefore apparent," dr. Burns remarked, "that the sharelolders have no reason to regret that heir capital is invested in a shipping ompany, for the war lias not affected he value of their shares. The position if the Union Steamship Co. is analafous, and a similar examination will how that the. shareholders in that com>any have as good reason to be satisie<!i" * / ■-.•■■■: