Burns, Philp Annual Review
p. 68 · Read in the full issue
South Seas Trade
Burns, Philp Annual Review Indicates Improvement
“I WOULD like to draw attention to the fact that we have not a monopoly in the South Seas, as so many people seem to believe,” said Mr. James Burns, chairman of Burns, Philp and Co., Ltd., at the annual meeting in Sydney on May 15. “We are open to world-wide oppo sition and are in direct active competi tion with the Dutch, French, German, and many other nationalities.
“As a consequence of the all-round improvement in trade, our Australian branches have done very well,” continued Mr. Burns, “but on the other hand the Mandated Territory and Papua have not been prosperous, except where there has been unusual activity in regard to min
ing, which certainly has saved the situa tion in that quarter. In Java a normal year has been experienced, but our in terests in the United States have been affected by the depression there. There has been an improvement in the price of copra. The company owns many plan tations, and at the prices ruling for copra last year these were more of a liability than an asset; hence the board con sidered it necessary to write down £25,000 per annum, and it will be ad visable to allocate another £25,000 next year if sufficient profits are available, to make a total write-down of £100,000. which should bring these estimates well within the market value with copra at £12 per ton.”
Mr. Burns said that during the year the company bought two motor vessels: from the North German Lloyd. When it was announced that the two vessels were to be placed by the German company in the trade between Australia and the Mandated Territory, Burns Philp and Company had made unsuccessful at tempts to secure the reimposition of the Navigation Act by the Federal Govern ment. As the vessels were offered to the company, and as another unit was. needed for the Singapore trade, the direc tors considered it the best policy to purchase, conditionally upon receiving a certain amount of immunity from com petition for a number of years. The Neptuna was to be retained in the trade in which her German owners originally intended her to run, from Australia to Hong Kong. It was anticipated that a loss would be made on this trade, but the service would be of convenience to the people in the Mandated Territory. ‘‘During the year,” continued Mr. Burns, “the Queensland Insurance Company in creased its share capital by giving one share for every two. As the company owns approximately a half interest in the Queensland Insurance Company, this has considerably augmented our share holding, but it is not anticipated that the total amount of dividend received from the insurance company will be in creased.
“The outlook for the ensuing year as regards copra is considerably brighter,” he concluded, “but, of course, everything will depend upon whether the improve ment in the market can be maintained.
On the whole, the year has turned out fairly satisfactorily, the largely increased sales being the chief cause of content ment.”—“S.M. Herald” report.