The Bedevilment of Pacific Trade

pUBLIC servants —in Australia, at any rate —actively resent the fact that the commercial com munity, hard-working and “hard boiled,” regard the public services with feelings ranging from kindly tolerance to outspoken contempt.

The bureaucrats have only them selves to blame.

In this issue, we recount the ex perience of an Islands trader. He obtained an order for Australian meat for New Guinea—and the man who can beat the ruthless, price cutting American interests in this held has to “go some”—only to find the business held up in Australia by some pettifogging export regula tion, and a Department incapable of rising above the printed letter of the regulations.

It was the same public service which virtually killed the Fiji-Aus tralian banana trade. Fiji buys goods worth £1,250,000 annually; and, owing to the exchange position (the Australian £ is 25 per cent, under sterling, while the Fiji £ is only per cent, under) was will ing to take more Australian goods.

But Fiji said: “This must not be too one-sided. You, in return, must buy some of our products.” After much argument, Australia agreed to lower its tariff somewhat to admit, annually, £40,000 worth of Fiji bananas. The trade commenced — bananas in exchange for Australian foodstuffs. But it lasted no time at all. Australian Departments threw everything at Fiji bananas except the Prime Minister’s dog-kennel—

primage, sales tax, income tax, and various other imposts apparently devised for the bedevilment of trade. Some of these taxes were reluctantly removed when Fiji threatened tariff retaliation: but the new trade has not flourished. Fiji still buys largely in Australia; but that is due to the exchange position, and not love; and we know what to expect when the currencies are re valued.

Australia’s nearest neighbour, New Caledonia, has an overseas trade turnover of nearly £2,000,000

annually. Last year (1935), the big

French colony bought Australian goods worth £296,000, and sold Aus tralian goods worth £14,000! This is the same Australia which is howl ing its head off because the United States are selling Australia about ten times as much as they are buy ing! We know what to expect if and when France goes off the gold

standard. That N.C. trade will dis appear in a night. And serve us right!

Not long ago, the Australian Governmental authorities invited tenders for the supply of rice to New Guinea. The contract —an im portant one —went to Chinese in terests, whose price was very slightly less than that quoted by the Australian trading firms. Yet the whole political barnyard in Aus tralia is in an uproar because Messrs. Burns, Philp and Co. Ltd. have suggested that, for the very same reason (a saving in costs) they may build a couple of little ships in China.

We could continue to multiply instances, but those will suffice.

Australia, officially, wants overseas trade, and is spending huge sums annually in chasing it. Yet here, right at her doors, in the rapidly developing Pacific territories, is a rich market, of which it may be said that it belongs to Australia by geographical right. Because the Australian pound is at a discount, Australia now virtually commands much of that trade; and one would suppose that advantage would be taken of this favourable circum stance to build up harmonious reci procal relations with the Pacific territories, and bind this valuable traffic to the Commonwealth for all time, so that it will not fade away when currency values are altered.

But, no! There is no coordination of overseas trade effort—there is not even a comprehensible policy governing overseas trade. Each Department is “on its owneach little bureaucrat is fiercely and jealously observing the letter of his little set of regulations; and each Minister, who ought to be con trolling his Department and coor dinating Government policy, is either worrying about the next election, or dreamily picturing him self in Court breeches at King Ed ward’s coronation.

Mr. Leslie V. Waterhouse, technical director of Placer Development Co. Ltd., arrived in England early in May, after visiting America. Mr. Waterhouse has been having a busy time; he spent three weeks in San Francisco with his asso ciates, then left for New York, making visits to South and Central America by air to inspect the workings of Placer De velopment Go’s subsidiary concerns. Mr.

Waterhouse’s plans in Europe are in definite; but h© intends to look over the Junker aeroplane works at Dessau, in Germany.