Influences Affecting

Copra Prices

AFTER spending several months in Europe Mr. C. Winand, who formerly owned Matandeduk Plantation, in Nama tanai, New Guinea, has returned to Aus tralia. He has gone to live in the Northern Rivers district of New South Wales, and does not plan an early return to the Islands.

Mr. Winand, while abroad, made a per sonal inquiry into the copra position, and is not favourably impressed by the out look. The buying of copra in the European zone is now virtually in the hands of one organisation; and the price is governed by the fact that recent scientific processes now allow various other commodities— whale oil, ground nuts, soya beans, etc. — to compete with copra. He thinks the copra price must come back presently to a more reasonable rate; but it is obvious that in future it must be aligned to a considerable extent with the prices of the other oil-bearing commodities referred to.