Lands Produce

Jnless otherwise stated, quotations are Australian currency. Aust. £ equals roximately 16/- Stg., NZ, or W ioa; 18/- Fiji; 20/- Tonga, Solomons & HC areas; 196 Pac. Frs.; 5U52.25.)

Copra

he British Ministry of Food 0-years tract, which governed copra prices 3 apua and New Guinea, Fiji, Western ioa, Solomon Islands, and Gilbert and :e Colony (and. to some extent, in ga and Cook Islands) expired on De ber 31, 1957; since when each Terrl has made its own arrangements for ;ction and marketing of copra. \PUA - NEW GUINEA:—AII production lellvered to Copra Marketing Board, ;rolled by six members, including three iters’ representatives; and the Board cts distribution and sales, and makes ments to the producers. Production ; mainly to (a) Unilever (30,000 tons ing 1961), (b) Australia (30,000 tons local consumption), (c) crushing-mill Rabaul (40,000 tons), and (d) Japan •plus as available). Prices generally f with ruling rate in Philippines, with niums for hot-air dried, ar January and February, 1962, P-NG ra Board’s Tentative Purchase Prices. copra delivered main ports remain hanged at: Hot-Air Dried, £AS4/10/ton; FMS, £AS3 per ton; Smoke-Dried, 52 per ton.

IJI: —No Government control—producers where they wish. Bulk of copra goes crushing-mills in Suva. On Jan. 1 es were HAD £P4S/5/-: FM 12/15/-.

EST E R N SAMOA:—Official Copra rd takes all production, sells same and :es payments to producers. In 1961, 0-4,000 tons went to Abels Ltd., NZ ihers, and about 6,000 tons to Unilever, DNGA: —Sales are under Government :rol. Part of production goes to Europe, er arrangement with Unilever con led by Philippines prices, and part to open market.

DLOMON IS.:—All production marketed iugh official BSI Copra Board, at prices :d on Philippines rates. Of the ;ectorate’s 1961 output (about 20,000 s), 14,000 tons was to go to Unilever, 4,000 tons to Australian crushers; the balance sold on the open market. a.l price in Dec. was: Ist grade, 1/-/-; 2nd grade, £46/10/-; 3rd grade, (/-/- per ton, f.0.b., BSIP ports.

ILBERT AND ELLlCE:—Production keted in Europe through official Copra rd, at prices based on Philippines s, less “stabilisation fund” charges.

EW HEBRIDES: —On Jan. 3, the copra e was reported as £A33/-/- (6,600 . francs) per ton delivered Vila/Santo. uch price then was 77 heavy ics per metric ton, c.i.f., Marseilles.

DOK IS.:—Subject to the copra ;ract provisions between Cook Is. ipers and Abels, Ltd., of Auckland, operate the only NZ copra crushing . the price paid is average London e for previous three months, less dling charges. Price fixed for last rter of 1961 was £NZS2/13/3 Ist grade, Z5l/8/3 standard grade—both f.0.b., o tonga.

Other Produce

»coa: —Islands prices are usually based the rates for Ghana Cocoa which on . 5 had dropped to £ Stg.lBB/15/- per c.i.f., Sydney.

SAMOA:—Nominal price ouoted in ney on Dec. 7: grade 1 £5265, grade i 5255, f.0.b., Apia.

PNG.: Jan. s—Quote No. 1: £230 (top grade), £220 (medium), £2lO (low): quote No. 2: £220 (good quality), £2lO (medium), £2OO (low) —nominal prices; no Sydney sales during Xmas-New Year period when Australian cocoa-using factories were closed.

COFFEE.—P.-N.G.: Jan. 5, good quality A grade, per lb, 4/- to 4/2; B grade, 4/-; C grade, 2/6 to 3/-, c.i.f., Sydney.

Overseas c.i.f. coffee prices were reported in late Dec. as: Kenya A, f.a.q., £Stg.44l, B £ Stg.36l, C £ 5tg.326; Tanganyika A £ Stg.43l, B £ Stg.3sl, C £Stg.32l; Buguishu AA £ 5tg.395, A £ 5tg.375, B £Stg.3ss; Uganda Robusta £ Stg.l4B.

Peanuts: P.-N.G.; F.0.B., Lae. Jan. 5

Kernels: White Spanish, 1/4 lb; Red Spanish, 1/2; Virginia Bunch, 1/7, in shell 1/1.

RUBBER: —P.-N.G price is based on Singapore rate, which on Jan. 4 was; No. 1 RSS, Spot, 78*A Straits cents per lb (27.29 d Aust.).

VANILLA BEANS: Victor Karp, Tulk & Co., Sydney, reported Jan. 5: White and yellow label, processed, standard packs 44/-; green label, 43/-, c.i.f., Sydney.

RICE (Aust.): Prices as from May, 1961—P.-N.G.: Dry brown and dressed. 112 lb bags, 5 tons and over, £56/10/- per ton, f.0.w.; under 5 tons £57. Vitamised and enriched white, 112 lb bags, 5 tons and over, £63 f.0.w.; under 5 tons, £63/10/-. Other Pac.

Islands: Dry, brown, etc., 5 tons and over, £64/10/-; under 5 tons, £65 per ton f.0.w., Sydney or Melbourne.

PEARL SHELL.—Quotations for Aus tralian M.O.P. Shell on Jan. 5 by Svdney independent shell agents were: Sound £ A 825, D £ASSO, E £A3OO, EE £AI9O (in store Sydney). Cook Islands: Penrhyn £NZSOO (approx.), fob., Raro tonga.

TROCHUS: Quote No. I—Papua-N.G. £145 per ton, c.i.f., Sydney; 8.5.1. £l5O per ton, c.i.f., Sydney. Quote No. 2: Papua-NG, 8.5.1. £l5O per ton, with downward price trend.

Green Snail Shell.—Quote No. 1:

£450 per ton; Quote No. 2: £460.

CROCODILE SKINS: 12 in. and over, small scale, first quality: P.-N.G. —Quote No. 1 13/- per in., f.0.b., P-NG port; Quote No. 2 16/-; B.S.l.—Quote No. 1 15/- per in., del. Sydney: Quote No. 2 16/-.

PAPUAN GUM: £95 per ton delivered buyer’s store, Sydney.

BECHE-DE-MER; Chang Sing Loong Co.,

Suva, quote F 2- to F 4- lb for well processed commercial varieties.

SHARK FINS: Suva merchants offer P3/per lb for well-dried fins of commercial quality.

London and US Quotations

Copra: LONDON Jan. 4, Philippines, in bulk. $165 US per long ton, c.i.f., UK/ Nth. European ports. Malayan, FMS, delivered weights c.i.f. UK/Nth. European ports, £Stg.s9/10/- per long ton. NEW YORK; Jan. 4, Philippines $l5l US per short ton, c.i.f. Pacific Coast ports CEYLON: 755 Rupees per ton, c.i.f. (£1 Australian is equal to about 2.25 US Dollars; £1 Aust. equals approx. 10Va Rupees).

Coconut Oil: LONDON, Jan. 4, Ceylon, 1%, in bulk, £Stg.B7/10/- per ton, c.i.f., UK/North European ports. Straits, 3%, £Stg.B2/-/-, c.i.f.

Rubber: LONDON, Jan. 5. c.i.f., RSS No. 1, Spot, 23 5 /sd. Stg. per lb.