Pacific Commerce and Produce

"Paris Thre at" To Pacific Franc

According to Senator Henry

fleur, in his roneod news-sheet

Dlished in Noumea, there is

aove afoot in Paris to devalue

Pacific franc.

3E senator warns the New Cale donian Government that it has to keep the country’s finances healthy as possible, so as not to i any of the agitation in France excuse to push the devalue eme ahead. ’.e says any devaluation of New edonia’s franc would mean “utter

i for the country”,

urrent selling rates for the ic, 196 PF’s to £1 Aust. 246 PF’s

al 1 Metropolitan France Heavy

ic; 196 PF’s to £1 Aus., 246 PF’s •IStg., and 881 PF’s to $1 U.S.

nal End to Sandy Ck.

d Sluicing in NG

ie directors’ report to shareholders of ly Creek Gold Sluicing Ltd., at the annual meeting in Sydney on March told the story of the end of another nining venture in New Guinea, ie balance sheet for the year to March .960, showed loss of £4,555 from gold ng. mid-1959, the mine manager resigned g to ill-health and left NG, and it me necessary for the company to >fer mining operations from Sandy Ic to a new site. Difficulties galore experienced in opening up the new and even then results were unsatis iry. The plant was transferred to al other areas, but payable ground not located. rally, to avoid further depletion of s, it was decided to cease alluvial ig operations altogether, couple of years earlier, Sandy Ck. together with Gold and Power Ltd. :h worked leases in the vicinity) ap :hed the P-NG Administration about ig up agricultural leases, for coffee- Lng as the gold petered out. How all the Upper Watut Valley land needed for the natives, entually, the plant, equipment and ings were put up for sale but there few takers. Two natives now are aking the property, anwhile, Sandy Ck. directors sold very :ably shares held in other companies, proceeds, with cash funds, were in d in a new company being formed, ware and General Supplies Pty. Ltd., i took over a thriving business at Sydney suburb of Brookvale. Sandy interest is £12,000 in an Issued al of £24,700; it expects to increase share to £15,000. ireholders re-elected Mr. W. J.

Iregor as director. His co-directors Messrs. H. G. Hyde (chairman) and . Hinks.

Closing the Gap

In Fiji's Trade

Trade figures released in February by the Fiji Comptroller of Customs showed an encouraging trend, in view of the eco nomic condition of the Colony—November (1960) exports far exceeded the value of imports that month from overseas coun tries: exports £ F 1,877,701, imports £F936,215.

Although goods imported during Janu ary-November, 1960, were worth £F14,597,645 against products exported valued at £F12,394,324, the gap between imports and exports was narrower than in the same 11 months of 1959 when im ports totalled £F15,282,175 and exports were only £F11,970,453.

Principal imports for November, 1960, were;—food, £F212,842; manufactured goods, £F190,285; machinery and trans port equipment, £F183,293; oil and fuel, £F119,827; and miscellaneous, £F84,966.

Domestic exports the same month were:—sugar, £ FI, 169,147; coconut oil, £F225,213; gold, £F72,166; copra, £F49,070; oil cake, £F28,078; and bananas, £F22,870.

In connection with trade and produc tion statistics, it is interesting to note that the Colony’s Standing Finance Com mittee has just agreed in principle to the appointment of an economic statistician, probably on secondment from UK for two years.

The Burns Commission reported that the economic statistics of Fiji were “in a rather primitive state” and that, as a result, it was exceedingly difficult to carry out any proper economic planning. Legis lation empowering the Government to col lect economic statistics is now being drafted for submission to the Legco, with in the next few months.

Profits of Papuan Rubber:

Marlboi Up, Kerema Down

Mariboi Rubber Ltd.’s profit for the half-year to December 31, 1960, rose to £33,250 (up £6,819 on previous year), mainly because the Papuan rubber price averaged 40.79 d. per lb compared with 35.29 d for the same period of 1959.

Result was after providing £2,515 de preciation, £2,500 amortisation, £5,682 tax provision, and £750 directors’ fees.

Rubber production dropped slightly, from 458,650 lb to 452,925 lb for the six months.

Interim 7Va ordinary dividend was paid on March 11.

Kerema Rubber Ltd.’s profit for the full year to December 31, 1960, was £24,050, a fall of £1,398 (almost SVz per cent.) on the previous year. Final dividend of 7% per cent has been recom mended, making 12 Vz for the year.

Present result is after tax of £5,590 (up £3,270), steady amortisation £2,016, and depreciation £2,611 (down £176).

Annual general meeting of shareholders will be held in Port Moresby on March 30.

Prominent Noumea Merchant

Interested in Fiji Manganese

Mr. Edward Pentecost, head of the Pentecost business group in New Caledonia (nickel mines, importing and exporting, retailing, and a host of other activities), left Noumea in February for Suva. He is reported to be interested in the exploita of a Fiji manganese mine, ore from which will be shipped to Japan.

Over the last few months Mr. Pentecost has caught the prevailing “take-over” fever. His group bought the Noumea merchant business of Societe Havraise Caledonien by acquiring all the shares from the parent firm in Le Havre, France.

He has recently been busily engaged in taking over the old-established importing and retailing house of Ventrillon and Co., which among other agencies, has repre sented Kodak’s in New Caledonia for many years.

Carpenter Group Lifts

Its Dividend Rate

W. R. Carpenter Holdings Ltd., one of the biggest Australian firms in the Pacific, has raised its dividend rates, despite some set-backs in Islands trading.

An interim dividend of 7Vi per cent, was announced in February, indicating an an nual rate of 15 per cent.

The dividend was at the same rate as the final for 1959-60 which with the then interim 6V4 per cent, made 13% per cent, for the year.

Directors say activities of the group have continued in the same pattern as in previous years. Profit was adequate to cover the dividend payment.

However, a recession occurred in some Islands areas in the prices of copra, cocoa

Well known among Islands businessmen, for his company's sales promotion work, Mr. D.

M. Kamerling, governing director of Demka Pty. Ltd., Sydney, will be making an extended business tour to the Continent and the United States in April and May.

and coconut oil and this affected mer chandise turnover.

New l-for-4 Issue for

Bali Plantations Ltd.

Shareholders in Bali Plantations Ltd., New Guinea, on March 7 were offered 152,000 ordinary 10/- shares at par in a ratio of one for every four held. The offer is open until April 4 and the rights are being traded on Sydney Exchange.

Ranking for dividend from June 1, the new shares will receive half the dividend normally payable in December, and thenceforward will rank equally with exist ing ordinary shares.

After the new issue, paid capital will be £380,000. The funds will be used to complete the purchase of Iwi Plantation, Bougainville, recently added to the string of first-class estates owned by the com pany—Bali, Witu Group; Morau and Kolai, south-east New Britain; Stockholm, north-west New Britain; and Londolovit, New Ireland.

In his circular to shareholders, Mr. J.

Dunbar Reid (chairman) said that, although copra and cocoa prices had fallen recently, there were signs of a re covery; and the board was satisfied that a 12 per cent, dividend would be main tained for the current year, since costs had been kept at a minimum and no labour difficulties had been experienced.

Coffee as a 'lively and

Remunerative" Crop for Fiji

While warning that it is a crop subject to wide market variations, Fiji Agriculture Department has lately been encouraging farmers to grow coffee for export.

NZ merchants recently received test samples of Arabica coffee from Ra Pro vince and found them surprisingly good.

They valued the coffee at £NZ2SO a ton, c&f, Auckland, and reported that proper drying and grading would probably have increased the price to £NZ3OO or more. It is hoped to make a shipment to Auckland shortly.

Indications are that, for a beginning, there are good prospects for an export industry for some 50 tons of coffee a year, worth about £FIO,OOO per annum.

Coffee plantings in Rewa area and else where are flourishing, now that the need for proper management and the use of fertilisers is realised. The Agriculture Dept, says that the quality factor will be of the greatest importance and farmers will be helped to produce the best possible quality of beans for what could well develop into a “lively and remunerative new industry”.

PI Mines Ltd. Looks

To The Future

Results of the programme to prove the worth of the Misima (Papua) areas held by Pacific Island Mines Ltd. have been sufficiently encouraging to justify directors turning their attention to the ultimate operational development of gold-bearing lodes already discovered, shareholders were told at the annual meeting in Sydney on March 16.

The board is now studying the avenues of financing these future operations, Mr.

Keith Waterhouse, one of the directors, having just returned from an inspection visit to Misima.

At balancing date, October 31, 1960, the company has issued capital of £49,148; sundry creditors and accrued expenses amounted to £2,252 —total of £51,400.

Its fixed assets (plant, tools, stores, buildings) were valued at £B,BBB (cost).

Current assets totalled £23,466 —bank cash, £13,618; term deposits and security, £9,050; sundry debtors, £252; prepay ments, £546. Cost of rights to prospect

on Misima was £3,325. Development penditure amounted to £8,667 (includ £22 from 1959). Formation and sh issues expenses accounted for £5,965.

The prospecting rights were acquired the purchase of all shares in Ocea Minerals Development Pty. Ltd. The lai was shown in the accounts as ow £1,087 to Pacific Is. Mines Ltd. for “ vances”.

Messrs. George W. Noe and Rupert Brierley were re-elected directors. Ot three board members are Messrs. Norn A. K. Wallis, Ernest R. Hudson, and K< H. Waterhouse.

Drive-In Theatre

For Port Moresby

Success of drive-in movie theatres Australia has induced Watkins Cons dated Ltd., builders and contractors Townsville, Qld., to join with Far North Theatres Ltd., of Cairns, in planning drive-in cinema at Port Moresby, Pap It will be completed by June.

Watkins Consolidated Ltd. will use P-NG subsidiary (D. C. Watkins Ltd.) the operating partner with Far North Theatres.

Recently listed on Sydney Stock change, Watkins Consolidated will pay first half-year dividend of 5 per cent.

October this year, according to a Ma announcement. Directors say the groi construction section has a £l% mil programme of work lined up, mostly Commonwealth and State government c tracts.

Development of Fiji's

Timber Industry

Timber is one of the principal nati resources of Fiji (over half the total 1 area is under forest) but the industry been largely undeveloped. The Colony ports almost as much timber as is mi locally.

In Fiji in February-March was Mr.

S. Sibley Elliot, of Melbourne, assist chief of Forest Products Division of Commonwealth Scientific and Indust Research Organisation, conferring v Forestry oflicials, studying what the 1( Department is doing, and visiting s mills. He will draw up a plan under wl certain Fiji timber will be sent to / tralia for scientific study.

Grants for the research have alre been allocated by the Colonial Devel ment and Welfare Fund, UK.

I, New Motor

Vehicles in P-NG

Figures released by the Port More Bureau of Statistics in February revei that there was a record number of i motor vehicles registered in Papua-1 Guinea last year. Up to September 1960, the period covered by the statist 1,095 new vehicles were put on the rc Motor-cars totalled 429 (Papua 245, 184), commercial vehicles 519 (Papua : NG 122), motor-cycles 98 (Papua 73, 25), and tractors 55 (Papua 43, NG : The figures include vehicles registered both Administration and privately.

Most popular car registered in the Ji Aug.-Sept, quarter was the French-m Peugeot (32), followed by the Gern Volkswagen (22) and the Austral Holden (19).

In the commercial field, Internatio (46) were most in demand, just pipp British Land Rovers (45), with Hoi utilities and station wagons (39) runn third. BSA cycles (22) far outstripped i of their competitors.