No New Trans-Pacific
p. 20 · Read in the full issue
Liners High Building Costs Kill British Imperial Plan
THE trans-Pacific liners, to compete with the Matson liners between ’Frisco and Australia, are not to be built.
Every week, for about two years, there has been published a different report about this matter. The last announce ment, late in July, to the effect that shipbuilding costs now are so high that it was impossible to build the ships on an economical basis, seems authentic.
The plan has been indefinitely post poned.
The proposal to build two new Pacific liners, which would run with the assist ance of a subsidy contributed by the Governments of Canada, Australia. New Zealand and Fiji, took definite shape early in 1936, and it was ratified by the Imperial Shipping Conference held at London in June. 1937.
Later, however, differences between the Governments concerned developed. Even tually, all except Canada agreed to the proposed terms and subsidies. Negoti ations with Canada dragged on and. in the meantime, shipbuilding costs rose by about 100 per cent. Costs will not fall until Britain’s expansive naval ship building programme is finished.