Lands Produce

nless otherwise stated, quotations are rustralian currency. Aust. £ equals oximately 16/- Stg.. NZ, or W. ;ia; 18/- Fiji; 20/- Tonga, Solomons IPHC areas; 196 Pac. Frs.; $U52.25.)

Copra

3PUA-NEW GUINEA: —All production slivered to Copra Marketing Board, rolled by six members, including three rers’ representatives; and the Board its distribution and sales, and makes uents to the producers. Production mainly to (a) Unilever, in UK, (b) ;~alia for local consumption, (c) jiing-mill in Rabaul, and (d) Japan [ulus as available). Prices generally with ruling rate in Philippines, with iiums for hot-air dried.

WG Board’s Tentative Purchase is for copra delivered main ports are: >Air Dried, £54/10/- per ton; FMS, per ton; Smoke-Dried, £52 per UI: —No Government control —pro- :rs sell where they wish. Bulk of a goes to crushing-mills in Suva.

December 21 prices were HAD >4/2/6, FM £FSI/12/6 (exclusive of a delivery bonus of £FI per ton). lESTERN SAMOA;—Official Copra :d takes all production, sells same makes payments to producers. It mainly to Abels Ltd., NZ crushers, to Unilever, UK. Local price re ;y has been £56/12/6 Samoan, first le.

ONGA: —Sales are under Government toI. Part of production goes to !pe, under arrangement with Unilever rolled by Philippines prices, and part jo open market. ♦LOMON IS.:—All production marketed :ugh official BSI Copra Board, at *s based on Philippines rates. Output to Unilever, UK; to Australian riiers: and the balance on to the open set. Local price for December was: grade, £5O/-/-; 2nd grade, £4B/10/-: I grade, £46/-/- per ton, f.0.b., BSIP <3 (Honiara, Yandina and Gizo). It slieved the recent rise in copra prices production and that 1962’s sage (when finally calculated) will led the 24,000 tons produced in 1961.

XBERT AND ELLlCE;—Production xeted in Europe through official Copra ■d, at prices based on Philippines (3 less freight, etc. The Government iidy to producers is: £7/15/5 per ton Ist grade, and £3/14/7 for 2nd grade.

EW HEBRIDES:—On Dec. 19, the a price was approximately £47/15/- 60 Pac. francs) per ton delivered '/Santo. French price then was 92 V 4 ;y francs per metric ton, c.i.f., settles. !>OK IS.; Copra goes to Abels, Ltd., Auckland, who operate the only NZ ;a crushing mill. Price paid is average ;lon price for previous three months, handling charges. Price for final •ter of 1962 was £NZSO/3/ll Ist '■e, £NZ4B/18/11 standard grade—both ... Rarotonga.

Other Produce

DCOA: —lslands prices are usually :d on the rates for Ghana cocoa which iDec. 20 was £Stg.l73/10/- per ton, > > Sydney. Reports state that the is due to the UK’s Cocoa Study Group mate that demands for cocoa beans 963 could be well in excess of world ■.uction. -N.G.: Sydney buyers on Dec. 20 re led: Quote No. 1: In store, Rabaul. •rt quality £l9O per ton or on wharf uey, according to quality; £l7O-£180; ie No. 2: Best quality, on wharf Syd.i

Melb., £200; in store, N.G. ports, £lBO to £lB5.

W. SAMOA:—Nominal prices quoted in Sydney in mid-Dec. were: Grade 1, £Stg.22o: grade 2, £Stg.2ls, f.0.b., Apia.

COFFEE.—P.-N.G.: Dec. 20, good quality A grade, per lb, 4/- to 4/2; B grade, 3/9 to 4/-; C grade, 2/9 to 3/4, c.i.f., Sydney.

Overseas c.i.f. coffee prices were reported on Dec. 20 as: Kenya A, f.a.q., £Stg.37s, B Stg.3so, C £Stg.3ls; U/G £ Stg.2Bo; Tanganyika AA £Stg.34o, A £ 5tg.325, B £Stg.3lo; Uganda Robusta £Stg.l79.

PEANUTS: P.-N.G.: Sydney agents quoted Dec. 20:—F.0.b., Lae; 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 Dec. 20 was: No. 1, RSS, Spot, 81 Va Straits cents per lb (28.29 d Aust.).

VANILLA BEANS; Victor Karp Tulk & Co., Sydney, reported Dec. 20: White and yellow label processed, standard packs, 37/-, green label 36/-, c.i.f., Sydney. 1Q?? IC P S^" nrv >r^hrntcn' n ariH A rfrp<s<;prt' i 1 ?? 3-7 a L d; Hit' yjo/ 1 ? r!ir J ■ S ,,n/« d c

fuzin'/ p vitSspi anH

£59/10/-. Vitamised and 6nricriod white, 112 lb bags, 5 tons and over. £65/15f.0.w., under 5 tons, £66/5/-. Other Pac. Islands; Dry, white or brown, etc., £67/10/- (any quantity), f.0.w., Sydney —Quotations for Aus- Sydney Sound £825, D £550, E £3OO, EE £l9O (in store Sydney). Cook Islands; Penrhyn £NZSOO (approx.), f.0.b., Rarotonga.

TROCHUS.—Sydney buyers in mid-Dec. indicated the following quotations to Islands producers: No. I.—Papua

nominally £ll2 per ton, f.0.b., Papuan ports; N.G.— £95, c.i.f., Sydney; 8.5.1. — £ll5, f.0.b., Honiara. No. 2.—Papua— £loo per ton; N.G., 8.5.1. — £9O per ton.

GREEN SNAIL SHELL. —Sydney buyers quoted on Dec. 20: No. 1: £3OO-£320 per ton, f.0.b., Islands port. No. 2: £2BO (best quality), on wharf, Sydney: or £290, f.0.b.. Islands port.

Crocodile Skins. —On Dec. 20

Sydney buyers quoted for 12 in. and over, first grade quality as follows: P.-N.G. — 16/- per in., f.o.b. P-NG ports, small scale (salt water): large scale (fresh water) 10/- per in. 8.5.1. —16/- per in. (small scale) del. Sydney.

PAPUAN GUM: £B2/15/- f.o.b. Islands port.

BECHE-DE-MER: Chang Sing Loong Co..

Suva, quote F 2- (4 in. to 7 in.) to F3/- (9 in. to 11 in.) lb for well processed commercial varieties.

SHARK FINS; Suva mechants offer F4/6 per lb for well-dried fins of com mercial quality.

London and US Quotations

Copra: LONDON, Dec. 20. Philippines, in bulk $188.50 US per long ton. c.i.f., UK/Nth. European ports. Malayan, FMS, delivered weights, c.i.f. UK/Nth.

European ports, £Stg.62/10/- per long ton. NEW YORK; Dec. 20, Philippines, $167.50 US per short ton. c.i.f.. Pacific Coast ports. CEYLON: 910 Rupees per ton c.i.f.

Coconut Oil: LONDON, Dec. 20. Ceylon. 1% in bulk. £Stg.99/10/- per ton, c.i.f., UK/North European ports. Straits, 3%. £Stg.97/10 ' c.i.f.

Rubber; LONDON. Dec. 19. c.i.f.. RSS No. 1 Spot, 24 3 / 4 d Stg. lb. Dec. shipment 24-l/16d Stg. lb. Sept, shipment 23-11/16d Stg. lb. (£1 Australian is equal to about 2.25 US Dollars or 10Vi Rupees).