Exchange Rates

FlJl.— Through Bank of NSW, ANZ Bank, Bank of NZ, Bank of Baroda. Sterling dollar on Fiji dollar, buying £1 = $F2.11; selling $2,085. Aust. dollar on Fiji dollar, buying $A1.0117 = SFI; selling $A1.0288 = SFI.

WESTERN SAMOA. —Through Bank of Western Samoa, controlled from NZ, seller SAI to SWS Tala 1.2470.

Norfolk Is., Papua-New Guinea. Aus

rralian currency used: no exchange payable in transactions with Australia.

FRENCH PACIFIC COLONIES.— Pacific francs (CFP) are used in New Caledonia, New Hebrides (jointly with Australian dollars), Wallis and Futuna Islands and Fr. Polynesia. French Bank, Sydney, on Sept. 25, quoted: Selling, Noumea and Papeete, 110.86 Pac. francs to $ Aust.; approx. 100 Pac. francs to US $; Noumea 18.18 Pac. francs to 1 French franc (conversion rate: 1 Pac. franc equals 0.055 French franc). Paris- London: Buying 13.18 francs to £. Also, £ equals 239.67 Pac. francs.

GILBERT AND ELLICE:—Board pays growers $78.40 per ton and receives $143.05 per ton overseas; 2nd grade price 3£c per lb.

NEW HEBRIDES:—Copra sold direct by planters to France and Japan. Official market price on Aug. 23 was $72 (7,200 Pac. francs).

Marseilles, 1,060 francs, Aug. 23.

COOK IS.: —Copra goes to Abels, Ltd., of Auckland, who operates NZ's copra crushing mill. Prices for October 1 to December 31 were fixed, subject to freight adjustment, at $NZ173.38 Ist grade, hot air dried; $NZ171.30 Ist grade, sun dried, and $NZ169.73 standard grade.

US TRUST TERRITORY:—Board pays $U5112.50 per ton, grade 1; $lOO per ton, outer islands.

Other Produce

BECHE-DE-MER: Chang Sing Loong Co., Suva, quote F3sc (4 in. to 7 in.) to F4oc (9 in. to 11 in.) Ib depending on quality, Honiara.—Live slugs, over six inches, black six for 10c, other colours —12 for 10c.

CHILLIES.—SoIomons, Honiara, Tabasco, grade one, dried 22c per Ib, wet, 6c per lb; long red, grade one, dried, 12c per Ib, long red, wet, 3c per Ib.

COCOA.—lslands rates are based on Ghana prices. Ghana price on Sept. 4 was £307/6/- per ton, c.i.f., UK Spot.

September, Quote No. 1: In store Rabaul, export quality $530 per ton, delivered ex wharf Sydney $590. Quote No. 2: Best quality ex-wharf Sydney $5BO, in store NG ports $523 (for UK, Continent and USA shipments).

Prices still fluctuating and have been as high as $670 per ton during the past month.

W. Samoa.—Nominal quotation for mid-Sept. was Ist grade, £Stg2Bs; 2nd grade, £Stg26s, f.o.b. per ton, and unchanged.

New Hebrides.—beach, Vila, Santo, $3OO per ton.

Solomons.—4 cents a Ib delivered to a fermentary, 3 cents a Ib at buying points.

COFFEE.—P-NG: Mid-September, Quote No. 1, good quality A grade 49£c per Ib; B grade 47c; C grade 42c; X grade 47c and native X grade 46c (ex-store Sydney).

CROCODILE SKINS. Recent Sydney buyers quoted for 12 in. and over, Ist grade quality as follows; P-NG —$3.05 per in., f.o.b. main ports, small scale (salt water); large scale (fresh water) $2.10 per in, 8.5.1., Honiara: $l.BO to $2.80 per in.; Gizo: $2.10 per in.

GREEN SNAIL SHELL.—At present there is no market for green snail shell.

PAPUAN GUM: Graded gum $195 per ton, f.0.b., NG ports.

PASSIONFRUIT.—Cook islands, Islands Foods Ltd. pays growers NZ2.5c per Ib for good fruit.

PEANUTS. P-NG: Sydney agents reported recently f.0.b., Lae; Kernels—white Spanish 17.25 c Ib.

PEARL SHELL.—Torres Strait Pearlshellers' Assn, recently quoted these prices for MOP: AA grade, $A1,260 per ton; A, $1,460; B, $2,060; C, $2,100; U, $1,260; E, $910; EE, $635 and EEE, $375, f.0.b., Thurs. Is.

Solomons.—Honiara, mother of pearl blacklip 15c Ib, goldlip 20c Ib. Cook Islands.—Manihiki, 40c-46s per Ib: delivered Rarotonga, 50c-56c per Ib. French Polynesia.—Tuamotu, Gambier shells, to $l,OOO per ton, Papeete.

PYRETHRUM.—NG growers 17c Ib, flowers.

RICE (Aust.): Prices, until Mar. 31, 1971, are—P-NG: Dried brown rice, $132 per ton, f.o.w. Sydney. Vitamin-enriched white rice, $146.50 per ton. Other Pacific Islands: Polished white (56 Ib bags) or dried brown rice (112 Ib bags), $156 per ton, f.o.w.

RUBBER. —P-NG price is based on Singapore rates which on Sept. 25 were: Prompt nominal shipment Malayan cents per lb; Oct., Msoi cents per lb and Nov., MSU cents per lb (all about 19£ Aust. cents per lb).

SANDALWOOD.—New Hebrides, landed on the beach, Vila and Santo, $250 a ton.

SHARK FINS; Chang Sing Loong Co., Suva, offers 55c per lb for well-dried fins of commercial quality.

TROCHUS.— Sept. 27— Papua— $180-$ 190 per ton — Honiara —A good market, prices being 3c to 4c per pound—NG—slso-$l6O per ton — Hebrides —sloo per ton — US Territory —World Trading, Hong Kong, after sellers.

TURTLE SHELL.—BSI; First grade unmarked 60c to $1.50 a lb at Gizo.

VANILLA BEANS. —Prices recently were: White and yellow label processed standard packs, $7.60; green label $7.50, c.i.f., Sydney.

Tonga.— sT4.2o, f.0.b., Nukualofa; $T4.50, Mel bourne.

Uk, Us Quotes

COPRA: LONDON, Aug. 21, Philippines, in bulk, $U5206.30 per long ton, c.i.f., UK/Nth.

European ports; US Pacific coast SUSI 66, buyer, SUSI 72, seller.

COCONUT OIL: LONDON, September prices unquoted.

RUBBER: LONDON, Sept. 25, Spot 182 d Stg.

Ib; Oct., 19|d Stg. lb; Dec. 18d Stg.