Produce Prices

(Unless otherwise stated, quotations are In Australian currency. Aust. £ equals approximately 16/- Stg., NZ, or W.

Samoa; 18/- Fiji; 20/- Tonga, Solomons & WPHC areas; 196 Pac. Frs.; $U52.25.)

Copra

PAPUA-NEW GUINEA:—AII production Is delivered to Copra Marketing Board, controlled by six members, including three planters’ representatives; and the Board directs distribution and sales, and makes payments to the producers. Production goes mainly to (a) Unilever, in UK, (b) Australia for local consumption, (c) crushing-mill in Rabaul, and (d) Japan (surplus as available). Prices generally tally with ruling rate in Philippines, with premiums for hot-air dried.

P-NG Board’s Tentative Purchase Prices for Copra delivered main ports are; Hot-Air Dried, £7l/10/- per ton; FMS, £7O/-/- per ton; Smoke-Dried, £69/9/9 ?er ton.

FIJI; —No Government control—pro ducers sell where they wish. Bulk of copra goes to crushing-mills in Suva.

Sept. 20 prices were: HAD £FS9/5/-,

M £Fs6/15/-.

WESTERN SAMOA:—Official Copra Board takes all production, sells same and makes payments to producers. It goes mainly to Abels Ltd., NZ crushers, and the open market. Local price re cently was £56/12/6 Samoan, first grade.

TONGA; Sales are under Government control. Part of production goes to Europe, under arrangement with Unilever controlled by Philippines prices, and part on to open market.

SOLOMON IS.: All production marketed through official BSI Copra Board, at prices based on Philippines rate. Output goes to Unilever. UK; to Australian crushers: and the balance on to the open market. These prices, in September, were: Ist grade, £7O/-/-; 2nd grade, £6B/-/-; 3rd grade, £63/-/- per ton, f.0.b., BSIP ports (Honiara, Yandina and Glzo).

GILBERT AND ELLlCE:—Production marketed in Europe through official Copra Board, at prices based on Philippines rates less freight, etc. The Copra Board subsidises the price at: First Grade £6/4/2 per ton, Second Grade £2/2/1 per ton.

NEW HEBRIDES;—Price on Sept. 20 was approximately £A4S/-/- (9,000 Pac. francs). French price on Sept. 6 was 1,015 francs per metric ton, c.i.f., Marseilles.

COOK IS.; —Copra goes to Abels, Ltd., of Auckland, who operate the only NZ copra crushing mill. Price paid is average London price for previous three months, less handling charges. Prices for last quarter, Oct.-Dec., 1965, are £NZ7S/6/ll Ist grade, £NZ74/1/11 standard grade— both f.0.b., Rarotonga.

Other Produce

COCOA: —Islands prices are usually based on the rates for Ghana cocoa.

On September 23 these were approx. £ Stg. 145/-/- per ton, c.i.f., Sydney.

On Sept. 23, Quote No. 1: In store Rabaul. export quality £126 per ton, ex wharf Sydney, £132. Quote No. 2: Best quality, on wharf Sydney, £l2O, in store N.G. ports £ll9 (for UK, con tinent and USA shipments).

W. SAMOA: —Nominal prices quoted in Sydney, Sept. 8, were: Grade 1, £Stg.l7o/-/-; grade 2, £Stg.l3o/-/-, f.0.b., Apia.

COFFEE.—P.-N.G.: September 23, good quality A grade, per lb. 4/4y 2 ; B grade

4/2 Vz ; C grade, 3/6 Vz to 3/9 V 2, c.i.f., Sydney.

Approximate overseas c.i.f. coffee prices were reported on September 23 as: Kenya AA £Stg.44o, A £Stg.42s, B £Stg.4ls, T £ Stg.36o, C £Stg.4os; Sannani £Stg.42o; Mattari £Stg.44o; Harrari £ Stg.3Bs; Indonesian Robusta API Special £Stg.26s, API £Stg.247.

AP2 £ Stg.23o, APIO £Stg.23s. (Prices for Mattari, API Special and API were slightly higher on Sept. 28).

PEANUTS.— -P.-N.G.: Sydney agents reported Sept. 23 —f.0.b., Lae; Kernels— white Spanish 1/7 Vz lb.; Virginia bunch 1/9 Vz lb.

RUBBER.—P.-N.G. price is based on Singapore rate, which on Sept. 20 was: Oct. shipment, prompt 66V 8 Straits cents per lb (23.06 d Aust.), Oct. shipment 66% Straits cents per lb (23.28 d Aust.), Nov. shipment 67V 2 Straits cents per lb (23.54 d Aust,).

VANILLA BEANS.—Victor Karp Tulk & Co., Sydney, reported Sept. 23: White and yellow label processed, standard packs 49/6, green label 48/6, c.i.f., Sydney.

RICE (Aust.); Prices settled in Sept, were—P.-N.G.: Dry brown and dressed, 112 lb bags, £5B/10/- per ton, f.o.w.

Vitamised and enriched white, 112 lb bags, £65/-/- f.o.w. Other Pac, Islands: Dry, white or brown, etc., £6B/-/- (any quantity), f.0.w., Sydney or Melbourne.

PEARL SHELL.—Quotations for Aus tralian M.O.P. Shell on Sept. 23 by Sydney independent shell agents were: Sound £B5O, D £625, E £335, EE £235 (in store Sydney). Cook Islands: Penrhyn £NZ42S (approx.), f.0.b., Raro tonga.

TROCHUS.—Sydney buyers on Sept. 23 Indicated the following quotations to Islands producers: No. 1 Papua nominally £9O per ton, f.0.b., Papuan ports; N.G. and 8.5.1. £B5-£9O, f.0.b., Islands ports. No. 2—Papua—£Bo-£9O per ton; N.G., 8.5.1.—£75-£B5 per ton.

GREEN SNAIL SHELL.—Sydney buyers quoted on Sept. 23: No. 1; Ist grade only, £235 on wharf, Sydney. No. 2: £220 (best quality), on wharf, Sydney.

CROCODILE SKINS.—On September 23 Sydney buyers quoted for 12 in. and over, first grade quality as follows: P.-N.G.— 28/- per in., f.o.b. P-NG ports, small scale (salt water); large scale (fresh water) 17/- per in. 8.5.1. 28/- (small scale) del. Sydney.

PAPUAN GUM: £B2/15/- f.o.b. Islands port, £95 del. Sydney or Melbourne.

BECHE-DE-MER: Chang Sing Loong Co., Suva, quoted F 2- (4in. to 7 in.) to F3/- (9 in. to 11 in.) lb for well processed commercial varieties.

SHARK FINS: Chang Sing Loong Co., Suva, offers F4/6 per lb for well-dried fins of commercial quality. ICEP Pty. Ltd., 22 Taylor St., North Curl Curl, Sydney, quote 6/6 to 8/6 lb., ex-store Sydney, according to quality.

London and US Quotations

COPRA: LONDON, Sept. 23, Philippines, in bulk, $207 US (equal to £Stg.73/18/10) per long ton, c.i.f., UK/Nth. European ports. Malayan 1% c.i.f. UK/Nth. Euro pean ports, UQ. NEW YORK: Sept. 23, Philippines, $lB4 US c.i.f., Pacific Coast ports. CEYLON: 1,100 Rupees per ton, f.o.b.

Coconut Oil: London, Sept, Ship

ment, Ceylon, 1% in bulk, £ Stg.lls/10/-.

Rubber: London, Sept. 20, Oct.

shipment c.i.f., 19-15/16d Stg. lb; Spot 20%d Stg. lb; Dec. shipment 20-9/16d Stg. lb. (£1 Australian is equal to about 2.2 US Dollars or IOVz Rupees.)