Islands Produce

(Unless otherwise stated, quotations are in Australian currency)

Copra

Papua-NG—Production Control Board price: Main ports, Hot-air, £57 per ton (Kokopo, £55/12/6); Smoked, £56/7/6 (£55). Sydney crushers pay: Plantation Hot-air, £76; F.M.S. £75; Smoked, £74/7/6. Australia has 9 years’ con tract with UK, based on £53/15/- Stg.

Fiji.— £FS9/10/7 per ton. f.0.b.. Suva— producers get £FS4/10/6 ton, plantation grade, Suva or Levuka; £FS4/5/-. FMS; £FSI-£FS3, other. Fiji has 9 years’ con tract with UK Food Ministry.

New Hebrides.—At Vila and Santo; approx. £ABO per ton.

Samoa.—Producers receive £S4S/11/- (par with Stg.) per ton, f.0.b., Apia based on MOP rate of £ Stg.s3/19/- (less £SS/7/ll Duty, £S3/0/l Stabilisation).

BSl.—Growers get £ASI per ton, f.0.b., Honiara or Yandina (based on £ Stg.s3/15/- MOF price).

Tahiti.—Merchants pay 14,900 Pacific fr. per 1,000 kilos (£AIO6 per ton).

Cocoa

Islands prices are usually based on rate for Accra cocoa (W. Africa), quotation (from Colyer Watson Ltd., Sydney) for which on November 5 was £ Stg.24o (£ A 300) c.i.f.

Pacific cocoa was quoted nominally on Sydney market in November at: — New Guinea. — £A2BO per ton, ex wharf.

New Hebrides. —Nominally £A2BS.

Samoa.—Sydney agents in November quoted Samoan cocoa at £S24O (£A3OO) f.o.b. per ton. first-grade. (Samoan cur rency equals Stg.). London advices, dated October 4, showed No. 1 grade at £5245 f.0.b., and No. 2 grade at £S23O.

Coffee

New Caledonia.—Production exported to France at nominal equivalent of £A4SO per ton, Arabica; £A4OO, Robusta.

Papua-NG—Nominally £375 to £425 per ton (c.i.f.), according to quality.

Rubber

Sydney firms use London and Singapore rates as basis to buy Papuan rubber.

Nov. 6: No. 1 grade, RSS (sellers) Spot 45y 2 d. Stg. lb., c.i.f., London (56 7 /Bd. Aust. lb.); Singapore, RSS No. 1, 152Vk cents lb., f.o.b.

Vanilla Beans

Papeete merchants recently quoted 325 Pacific francs per kilo for Tahiti vanilla beans. Sydney quotation: White Label, 18/6; Yellow Label, 18/6; Green Label, 17/5 per lb., c.i.f., Sydney.

Rice

Rice shipped from Sydney to Islands was fixed in May at £6O per ton, f.0.b., White, Unpolished and Brown. (On plan tation in Papua-N.G., approx. £85.)

Trochus Shell

Market for trochus shell in Sydney is still unsettled and confused—most agents state they are not interested in buying

Until prices firm. Western Pacific shel't price- was last quoted at approx. £l7S' per ton on wharf, Sydney.

Green Snail Shell

Nominal quotation is at £l5O-£l6O pes ton, on wharf, Sydney.

Pearl Shell

By a contract between Gerdau Cco (USA) and majority of Torres pearlers TI shell prices were fixed, 1949-52, at) Sound grades, £A325 per ton, f.0.b., TIT “D” grade, £A225; “E” grade, all plus bonuses. Independent pearlen are selling at around £ASBO for Sounu grades; £A465, “D”; £A34O. “E.”