Higher Freights

Result of World Shortage of Shipping

CHIPPING freights continue to rise, to the discomforture of Pacific Islands residents.

Some correspondents are eager to at tack the Australian shipping companies.

But the Australians can do nothing—it is all part of a world-wide movement, based most definitely on a shortage of shipping.

The following extract from the Lon don Daily Tevegraph. of September 11, 1937, sets out the position quite clearly:

Shipping Freights

“As was expected, the August index number of shipping freights prepared by the Chamber of Shipping of the United Kingdom reflects the continued activity of the freight market. The index number for August on the basis 1929 = 100 was 153.56. This is 11.47 p.c. higher than in July, when the index was 137.76 and 73.91 p.c. higher than in August, 1936.

“The August figure is the highest for several years. It is significant, however, that the index on the basis 1920 =f 100 is still only 38.19—in other words, that freights are still, on the average, less than 40 p.c. of the level they reached during the 1920 boom.

“The high point of this month’s index is again the time charter rate, which is 22.22 p.c. higher than a month ago and 202 p.c. higher than a year ago. The rise in those markets in which there are minimum schedules in operation was generally less marked than in the uncon trolled markets. This is perhaps natural, because co-operation among shipowners was able to prevent those rates falling to the full extent of the general decline, and advances in those markets were se cured at an earlier stage in the recovery.”