Islands Produce

(Unless otherwise stated, quotations are in Australian currency)

Cocoa

ISLANDS cocoa prices are usually based on the ruling rate for Accra cocoa (West Africa), unofficial (re-seller’s) quotation for which in mid-August was £325 Stg., c.i.f. (equivalent to £406/5/- Aust.); the Gold Coast Cocoa Market ing Board is not quoting at present (between seasons). Quotation supplied by Colyer, Watson Pty., Ltd., Sydney.

Pacific cocoa beans were quoted on the Syd ney market in August at: — New Guinea: £2BO per ton, ex wharf.

New Hebrides: £284 per ton, ex wharf.

W. Samoa: The price in July ivas £337/10/- Aust. (£270 Samoan) per ton, f.0.b., Apia; but Sydney merchants in August reported “no quo tations at present—nothing offering from Samoa.’’ (Samoan currency equals Sterling.)

Trochus Shell

Nominal Sydney quotations are: Thursday Is., £lOl per ton, f.0.b.; N. Guinea, £BB per ton, c.i.f.. Sydney; Solomon Is., £95; Fiji, £F7O (£A76/7/3) per long ton on the beach at Suva; New Caledonia, 14,000 francs per ton, Noumea.

A TI firm recently offered £l2O per ton for trochus.

Coffee

Nominal quotations are:— New Caledonia: Production exported to France at above normal rates (equivalent to £A4OO, per ton for Arabica, £A3SO for Robusta).

New Guinea and Papua: Nominally £350 to £370 per ton (c.i.f.), according to quality.

Vanilla Beans

Papeete merchants quote 325 francs per kilo for French Oceania vanilla beans.

Prices for Tahiti beans quoted in Sydney (by J. C. Merrillees Pty., Ltd.) are White Label, 16/6 per lb., Yellow Label, 15/6 per lb., both c.i.f., Sydney.

Rice

Rice shipped from Sydney to Islands ports has been price-fixed at: New season’s crop, £5O per ton White and £54 per ton Brown.

Green Snail Shell

A nominal quotation in Sydney in August was at £B5 per ton, c.i.f., for f.a.q. shell —with buyers holding off.

Pearl Shell

By a three-years’ contract between the Otto Gerdau Company (USA) and the majority of Torres Strait pearlers, TI shell prices were fixed in 1949 at: Sound grades. £A325 per ton, f.0.b., TI; “D” grade, £A225; “E” grade, £AI2S —all prices to be plus bonuses.

Torres Strait pearling season re-opened in April-May. Purchase price for the independent pearlers’ output in 1950 was the subject of much negotiation by overseas buyers’ representatives at TI but finally was agreed to at approxi mately; £ASBO per ton for Sound grades, £A465 for “D’’ grades and £A34O for “E’’ grades.

Copra

Papua - New Guinea. Production Control Board’s fixed price, delivered to ship’s slings or ANGPCB warehouses, as from May, 1950: At main ports, Hot-air Dried, £4B/10/- per ton; Smoked, £47/7/6 (subject to premium up to £l/5/- for superior grades). Official price (as from May, 1950) for Papua-New Guinea copra sold in Sydney to crushers: Hot-air Dried, £67/15/-; Smoked, £67/2/6. Australia has a 9 years’ contract with Britain for the disposal of all Territories’ copra surplus to her own needs.

Piji.—Prom January 1, 1950: £53/14/3 PijiaHi per ton, PMS (UK Ministry of Food price)(; Fiji has a 9 years’ contract with the British MOF for all copra exported.

New Hebrides.—Price at Vila and Santo: £5:6 Aust. per ton.

Western Samoa.—Producers receive £4t Samoan per ton (£3 held for Stabilisation Fund) under a 10 years’ contract with the UH Food Ministry.

Fr. Oceania.—Papeete merchants have been paying 9,350 Pacific francs per 1,000 kilos foo Tahiti copra.

Rubber

Sydney trading firms use the London amc Singapore day-to-day quotations as a basis when buying Papuan rubber. An average rate during August for No. 1 grade RSS was: 28-3/16d. Stgi per lb., c.i.f., London; 127 cents, f.0.b., Singa* pore; equivalent to 35-7/16d. Aust. per lb.