Products Of The South Seas

Copra Market Continues Dull

THE copra market continues to see saw within a limited circle, and, at the moment of writing, the price has swung down almost to the lowest figure recorded. If the indications of the past 12 months are any guide it will now begin to swing the other way for a few weeks.

The market is extremely hard to forecast. Messrs. L. N. Fischel and Co., London, writing to Messrs. Brown and Joske, Suva, recently, placed their finger on the most curious fact of the situation when they said: “The general depression continues, but at the same time all the copra over here seems to be readily consumed at a price.” That is a thing that no one seems able to explain—all copra that reaches Europe goes quickly into con sumption and there is no marked ac cumulation of stocks.

Copra, as well as rival oil seeds, con

tinues to reach the European and American markets in very large quan tities, but already there are suggestions that the tremendous fall in prices in the past year is having the natural effect, and that production is steadily decreasing. Only very bold men ven ture to forecast the copra market — but it would not be surprising if the figures within the next three months indicate that the general price level for copra is moving to a somewhat higher plane.

However, South Seas planters in trading contact with Australia, who are getting the benefit of the Austra lian exchange position, have no reason to complain at present.

Whale oil production, which is now a most important factor in the fixation of copra prices, is dealt with elsewhere in this issue.