Tariff Altered

Creating a Market for French Cars in Tahiti

From Our Own Correspondent.

Papeete, July 5.

\IERCHANTS trading with French Oceania will be interested in some important modifications recently gazetted, which concern articles of foreign origin imported into the Colony. The new tariff is now in force and has led to the can cellation of many orders already placed abroad.

Foreign motor cars now pay an import duty based upon weight, instead of on value as before. The duty ranges from 640 francs per 100 kilograms for a 1,100 kilogram car to 1,240 francs per 100 kilos on a car weighing two tons; chassis with or without motors come under this same scale. Trucks intended for transporta tion purposes pay a duty ranging from 500 francs to 560 francs per 100 kilos.

The idea, of course, is to create a sub stantial preference in favour of French cars. Local garage operators, however, appear to be concerned over the new situation, because they have found from experience that most of the foreign visitors to Tahiti prefer to use American cars. The French Citroen motor-cars— owned exclusively by one of the largest garages here —are exceedingly economical to run and for this reason are much used by the local public, but they have never been very popular with tourists.

Other alterations in the tariff appear ing in the same notice include increased duties on foreign textiles and other articles of feminine wearing apparel. The small duty hitherto imposed on imported books has been suppressed.