Pacific Commerce and Produce

s Chances Of acting Capital

Ing his tour of British South i Territories in September and rr, Mr. Julian Amery, Parlia ry Under-Secretary for the es, was buttonholed on a vr of occasions by those re ig UK funds for development. loniara, BSIP, Mr. Amery had tne interesting things to say out financial aid from Britain fionies in general and the ms in particular.

United Kingdom still has 37 al territories for which it is sible (said Mr. Amery). The i Government would like to these territories everything needed, but was limited by )le resources, and by help still ?iven to independent countries Commonwealth, aid the whole Commonwealth led on investments which UK nake overseas. British invest overseas already totalled than all the rest of world nents put together. ■ per cent, of all money spent [P, for instance, came from £. Businessmen and traders consider that their own depended on the strength ealth of the pound sterling le sterling area.

Amery said that two-thirds world’s trade was conducted ding, and this volume was d on a very small basis of nd dollar reserves. If too were given away in Colonial pment and Welfare Schemes her colonial investments, the ing might be weakened. It re UK’s first duty to keep ; strong. 1 whether he could suggest for increasing the flow of capital to BSIP, Mr. Amery i thought that the Protector s doing fairly well already, d it must be remembered apital was a great coward, uld not risk itself in unstable gerous conditions, or where ppeared to be no possibility lasonable return. cal stability and a skilled force were the primary needs territory wishing to attract lent. The Solomons had 1 stability, but he con that the labour force needed more skilled and better The problem would be le in time. r parts of Asia and Africa

were no longer attractive to private investors, and there was a chance for BSIP to attract some of this

capital.

Prosperity from Cocoa?

Mr. Amery said he thought the balance of development in BSI was

about right. Copra had always been

the basis of the Solomons economy, and he had been glad to see it receiving special attention. He had been very interested by the new

development of cocoa plantations

on Malaita and other islands; he thought, from what he had seen, that it might bring the same pros perity to the Solomons that it had brought to the Gazelle Peninsula in New Guinea.

Mr. Amery said he also thought that BSIP had a big future in timber exports. The Geological Survey Department had told him, too, that they had a strong belief in the future of mining develop ment in the group.

APC's New Well

Shows Oil Traces

In a cautiously-worded statement on October 11, Australasian Petroleum Co.

Pty., Ltd., reported that “traces of liquid hydrocarbons”—oil, to the layman—had been encountered in the lehu well now be ing drilled in Papua.

No doubt with the 1958-59 experience at Puri well in mind (when oil was found, but petered out), the Sydney stock market was little moved. Investors apparently prefer to follow a wait-and-see policy, until after the well is drilled to its bottom, probably about 10.000 ft.

Overall Profit, But TEAL

Lost on Islands Services

There are two outstanding factors of in terest in the report of the directors of TEAL (Tasman Empire Airways Limited) for the year ended March 31. 1960. They are: • The inclusion in the accounts of the new loan of £3V4 million from the Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York, whereby TEAL has been equipped with Electra turbo-jets. • The heavy taxation imposed on the company by the NZ Government, whereby the company’s operating profit of £534.488 (from expanded, creditable gross earnings of £2,814,753) was reduced to a net sur plus of £108,471, which permitted a dividend of only 5 per cent. The NZ Government would not allow losses in Australia to be set off against profits else where, so the taxation provision this year is no less than £154,000. However, it is as broad as it is long TEAL is Government-owned.

In the year reviewed. TEAL made a loss of £74,997 on the Coral Route (Fiji- Tahiti) service, and of £1,518 on the Norfolk Island service. With its new

equipment, it probably could now do better on the Tahiti run, except that there is threatening competition there from both French and American sources.

TEAL’S directors now are: Sir Leonard Isitt, KBE (chairman); Sir Hudson Pysh, KBE, DFC (vice-chairman); G. N. Roberts, CBE, AFC; W. C. Taylor; Dr. A. M. Finlay; Air-Marshal Sir Richard Williams, KBE, CB. DSO. The executive staff are: A. A.

Watson, DFC (secretary); F. A. Reeves (general manager); J. W. Veale (assistant general manager); G. B. Bolt, OBE (chief engineer); H. M. Denton (commercial manager).

Good Profit For

Koitaki Rubber Co.

Final dividend of 13% per cent, will be paid by Koitaki Para Rubber Estates, Ltd., Papua, for the half-year to June 30, on capital doubled to £150,014 by a one-for one bonus issue.

The dividend is equivalent to 27% per cent, on pre-bonus capital and makes the full year’s payment 45 per cent., against the previous year’s 35 per cent.

The year’s consolidated net profit will be about £42,500, after Australian and Papuan tax and £5.000 special amortisa tion added to usual depreciation. This is about £7,500 above directors’ July esti mate.

Gillespie's Flour Co. Has

Interest in Papuan Bakery

One of the oldest flour-milling companies in the Pacific Islands trade, Gillespie Bros, (through its associate. Gillespie Bros.

Holdings, Ltd.), has acquired a substantial interest in a Port Moresby bakery, Papua, Gillespie’s shareholders were told at the annual meeting on September 30.

The bakery is that of United Bakeries at Boroko. Port Moresby, one of the two main bakers and pastrycooks in the Terri tory’s capital.

Govt. Aid for Emoeror

Gold Co. Recommended

John Taylor and Sons, London mining consultants, after an investigation into the Fiji goldmining industry, have recom mended to the Fiji Government that ex tended financial support be given to Em peror Goldmining Co.. Ltd., to expand operations.

The report recommends a first mortgage debenture or a loan of £F400,000 at 6 per cent., refund of Port and Customs Service Tax of £F75,000 and continuance of the present subsidiary of £F2 per ounce to a maximum of 75,000 oz for a further two years from June, 1961.

This would make possible an increase in production by June. 1964, to 100,000 oz, which, even if the price of gold remains unchanged, should make the company “economic and able to make profits for many years to come”.

The alternative to a programme of ex pansion is “inevitably one of working out the available ore and closing down”, the report said.

Dylup Plantations Take

Over Island Finance Co.

Dylup Plantations, Ltd., has acquired all the issued capital of Island Finance Co., Ltd., an unlisted company registered in NSW. with capital of £91,558.

Dylup has issued 140.490 5/- shares for the 366.223 shares in Island Finance (two Dylup for every five Island Finance shares, and paid 3d a share cash—£4,s7B. At the early October price of 12/9 for Dylup

shares, the deal was worth nearly £98,000.

Dylup’s paid capital went up from £36,622 to £240,372. The new shares rank for dividend from November 1, 1960.

In October, Dylup confirmed its annual dividend rate at 20 per cent, by announc ing an interim 10 per cent. Last year the company paid 20 per cent.—an interim 7 per cent, and final 13 per cent.

BSIP Trading Corporation

"Taking Advice on Sale"

New regulations enacted recently in BSIP enable the BSIP Trading Corpora tion, which conducts business as a store and agency and is owned by the BSIP Government, to sell out. The Government some time ago decided it should be taken over by private enterprise, saying it had already played a most valuable part in the economic life of the Protectorate since the war.

The corporation’s chairman, Mr. A. M.

Wilkie, said that following the enactment of the regulations the Government was taking expert advice about the best way of selling the Corporation, but this did not mean the sale was imminent.

Deadlock In Tonga

Dried Banana Scheme

Up to early October there appeared to be no further developments in connection with an offer made to the Tonga Govern ment by Dutch and American interests to establish a dried banana industry in Tonga.

The Tonga Government was understood to be insisting upon a controlling interest in any such project from its inception.

WRC's Profit Up:

Dividend Raised

W. R. Carpenter Holdings, Ltd., parent concern of one of the two main Islands trading groups has raised its dividend for 1959-60 following a rise in profit.

Pinal dividend of IV2 per cent, was an nounced in October; with interim 6V4 per cent., the year’s total is 13% per cent.

Last year it paid 12Vss per cent.

Profit for the year to September 30 was £843,995 (up £105,409 on last year’s £738,586).

However before arriving at the profit, the company transferred £55,564 to con tingencies reserve, £47,967 to fixed assets replacement reserve and £50,000 for long service leave. No provisions were made for these last year.

This year provision for taxation was £154,603 more (at £614,269) and £1,875 more for depreciation (at £372,261).

Placer Development Ltd.

Shows Higher Profit

Group profit at Placer Development, Ltd., Vancouver, rose strongly in 1959-60.

Profit for the year to April 30 was $1,580,431 Canadian compared with the previous year’s $1,152,399.

The company paid two dividends during the year totalling 50 cents and absorbing $1,290,000.

The annual report disclosed that its associate company, Bulolo Gold Dredging, Ltd., earned estimated profit of $875,100 in the year to May 31, compared with $687,693 the previous year.

Placer Development, Ltd., in the late 1920’5, originally bought the rich Guinea Gold NL leases on Morobe goldfield, NG, and after testing sold them to Bulolo Gold Dredging, Ltd. (a Vancouver company with the same technical control). BDG became the operating company, with large scale operations.