Produce Prices

Unless otherwise shown, stated quotations are in Australian currency. Australian dollar (May 10) equals: New Zealand. $1.2415 (buying), $1.2371 (selling); Fiji, $1.1184 (buying), $1.0944 (selling); Western Samoa, $0.9985 (buying), $0.9846 (selling); Tonga, pa anga 0.8826 (buying), 0.8650 (selling); US, $1.2425 (buying), $1.2375 (selling); UK, ",0.6836 (buying), %0.6758 (selling); French Pacific. CFP, 106.09 (buying), 104.47 (selling).

Copra

Copra Industries are controlled through copra boards in PNG, the Solomons, the Gilberts, both Samoas, Fiji, Tonga, the Cooks and the US Trust Territory. New Hebrides, French Polynesia and New Caledonia do not have boards and copra is either sold individually by growers to overseas buyers or used locally.

NEW GUINEA; The board, with planters’ reps, directs distribution and sales and pays planters.

Shipments are made to UK, European markets and to Australia and Japan, and coconut oil mills on New Britain.

Latest prices are: Per tonne, delivered main ports, hot-air dried, K 136; FMS, K 133; smoke-dried, Kl3l.

FIJI; The board fixes prices on Philippines copra, taking into account freight, taxes, selling costs, shrinkage, etc. The price is subsidised.

Latest prices were: Fiji 1, $190; Fiji 2, $171; CAS, S7O.

NEW HEBRIDES; Copra sold direct by plan ters to France and Japan. Burns Philp paying on wharf, Vila or Santo, April 5, FNH 4,200, Apr 2 96 met francs 100 kg cif Marseilles.

US TRUST TERRITORY: lst grade. SIOO, 2nd grade, S9O, 3rd grade, S3O. Outer Islands, $75, $65 and $55 ton for the three grades.

COOK ISLANDS: All production is sold to Abels Ltd, Auckland. Prices are based on average world prices for the prior three or six months, and remain in force for three months.

GILBERT ISLANDS; 5179.20 a ton, or 8c a pound.

WESTERN SAMOA: lst grade, $W5109.50, 2nd grade, $W596.50.

TONGA: All copra sold to EEC. Ist grade, 5T70; 2nd grade, STSB.

NIUE: Standard, $147 a tonne gross.

Other Produce

COCOA. lslands rates are based on Ghana >rices. Ghana price on May 10 was spot %stgl,l4B on, cif. UK Continent.

May 10, in store, Rabaul, export quality, K 1.230 >er tonne; delivered ex wharf Sydney $1,600 per onne.

Solomons. Delivered to Agriculture Dept of ices in Honiara and Aukl. Recent price was 25c per b dried beans first grade, 20c second grade.

Western Samoa. Ungraded beans, $23.50 (100 b).

COFFEE. PNG, May 10. Good quality, A Grade, 153 c per kg; B Grade, 248.5 c; C Grade, 244 c; Y

Jrade, 244 c (ex-store Sydney)

W. Samoa. Recently, WSTEC ground and Iried beans, 60 sene per lb wholesale.

PEANUTS. PNG: Sydney agents reported ecently f o b., Lae: Kernels white Spanish 19c lb.

BROOMCORN. Fiji, Ist grade, 16V2c lb, 2nd rade, 14V2c lb.

RICE (Aust): PNG: Dried brown, 25 kilo bags. 298.94 per tonne. Vitamin enriched white, 25 kilo

bags, $303.94 per tonne, all f.o.w. Syd ney/Melbourne. Pacific Islands: Calrose med grain, white, 25 kilo bags, $310 per tonne. Kulu long grain white, 25 kilo bags, $355 per tonne. All prices c.i.f. Sydney/Melbourne RUBBER. — Singapore, May 10, 46c a kilo VANILLA BEANS. — Prices recently were: White and yellow label processed standard packs, $7.50; green label $7.40, c.i.f., Sydney. Tonga. — $14.20, f o b., Nukualofa; $T4.50, Melbourne.

Exchange Rates

FIJI. — May 11: Through Bank of NSW, ANZ Bank, Bank of NZ, Bank of Baroda, First National City Bank, Aust $ on Fiji buying $F1 R $A.89 COOK IS., NIUE. — New Zealand currency is used.

NEW HEBRIDES. — May 11: Through Banque Nationale de Paris (Sydney), Indosuez Bank, ANZ Bank, Bank of NSW, National Bank of Aust, Com mercial Banking Co of Sydney, Commercial Bank of Aust, Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp, Barclays Bank International, $A1 R NHF 94 42 (buying), 93.12 (selling) — airmail transfer rate WESTERN SAMOA. — Through Bank of Western Samoa, controlled from NZ, $WS Tala 1 R $A 97 (buying).

TONGA. — Tongan dollar (pa’anga) R $A.89 (buying) NORFOLK IS, SOLOMON IS, GEIC, NAURU. — Australian currency used; no exchange payable in transactions with Australia.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA. - PNG kina and toea used; no exchange payable, at present, in tran sactions with Australia.

FRENCH PACIFIC COLONIES. — Pacific francs (CFP) are used in New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna Is, and Fr Polynesia. French Bank, Sydney, on May 11: quoted: $A1 R 106.22 CFP (buying), 104 76 CFP (selling) Paris-London: %1 R 8 5675 francs (buying), 8.5575 francs (selling) Pacific franc — London: %1 R 155.6363 CFP (buying), 155.4545 (selling), CFP to 1 metropolitan franc 18,43 (buying), 17.94 (selling).

Banks should be approached for daily rates. • Great excitement for New Caledonians on May 7 to have the first jumbo 747 land at Tontouta international

airport.