special cruise

Business Bulletin

Tonga set to control

shipping company

A SHIPPING company formed jointly by the Tongan government and the Columbus Line 15 years ago is about to pass totally into Tongan control. The

Shipping Corporation of Polynesia held

its last joint annual general meeting in Nuku’alofa on December 1.

Since the company’s incorporation in 1978 the Tongan government has held 60 per cent of the shares in the line.

Columbus Line has decided to sell its shares to the Tongan government and its involvement ended on December 31. The Shipping Corporation of Polynesia man

ages Tonga’s shipping fleet and generally

assists in the development of shipping activities in the kingdom.

Foreign reserves

hit record s3Bm

TONGA’S foreign reserves reached a record US$3B million at the end of June 1993. This was an increase of more than US$4.2 million from the previous quar ter ending March 1993. The Reserve Bank said the increase was due mainly to the build-up of unspent funds received by the government. There was US$l.4 million held for the construction of the Queen Salote Memorial Hall and $750,000 was transferred from trust funds for the repayment of government debt. The June quarter external trans actions rose by $5.3 million over the March quarter to nearly US$24 million.

The Reserve Bank predicts better economic growth in 1993/94 based on improvements in the squash, construc tion and tourism industries.

Fiji becomes

member of GATT

FIJI has been formally accepted as a member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). It becomes the 12th member of the agreement. Fiji’s membership became effective on Novem ber 16 after GATT director general Peter Sutherland received an application from Fiji to join GATT. GATT’s objectives of liberalising world trade is consistent with the Fiji government’s present economic policies of creating an open and competi tive economy.

Solomons to revive

livestock Industry

SOLOMON Islands plans to revitalise its livestock industry. During the indus try’s initial stage in the early 19705, there were 25,000 cattle in the country but the cattle population has since been reduced to 8000.

Solomon Islands’ ministry of agricul ture and lands says it’s looking at possible

ways of ensuring self-reliance in the livestock industry, a reduction in prices and an improvemejit in production, marketing and distribution.

In the new cattle development drive, smallholders will not be involved because they have failed previously because of marketing and management problems.

But cattle farmers, who either aban doned or poorly managed their farms can be helped under the proposed livestock rehabilitation programme.

Dome Resources

seeks more funds

DOME Resources will invite Papua New Guinean institutions to take up equity to help fund the small, high-grade Tolukuma project, 100 kilometres north of Port Moresby. Chairman John Boyer says additional funds will be needed to develop Tolukuma which is due to start production in late 1994.

He says as Dome’s main activity is in PNG, they will invite major PNG institutions to take up some equity in the company. The project has an estimated six-year life with an annual production of 50,000 ounces of gold from the current proven resource. Boyer says a landowner agreement was signed in mid-November and the company is confident of being granted a mining lease early in the new year.

Rarotonga resort

up for auction

RAROTONGA’S Pacific Resort is among 36 waterfront properties in the Cook Islands, Fiji and New Zealand with a total estimated value of US$43 million put up for sale by a New Zealand real estate company. The Pacific Resort is up for sale by auction in Auckland on March 16. The New Zealand-based Bayleys Real Estate is marketing the property internationally.

Other properties being auctioned by Bayleys include three in Fiji including the 12-acre Naigani Island Resort. The remainder of the properties are situated in the North Island of New Zealand. The properties are being marketed with advertising in New Zealand, the United States, Asia and Europe.

FSM to expand

fishing industry

THE Federated States of Micronesia is taking steps to develop its fishing indus try. President Bailey Olter has an nounced a visit by a national government delegation throughout the four FSM states to discuss on a range of topics in fisheries development. He said it was hoped that discussions would focus on how best to maximise the total stream of benefits from the country’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone.

Olter said the delegation would be most interested to discuss with the governors in the states of Yap, Pohnpei, Kosrae and Chuuk the ways and means of improving current fishing operations and optimising future returns. He said it was anticipated that long-lining, purse seining and fish processing along with related infrastructure would be the specific topics of discussions.

Call for review

to PNG sales tax

THE Papua New Guinean government has been asked to reconsider its decision on the two per cent sales tax imposed on all provincial governments. Chairman of the islands region premiers council and premier of West New Britain Bernard Vogae says the decision will result in a loss of revenue and negative cash flow effects within the provincial budgets for 1994. He estimated the total loss to be around US$4 million for the islands region.

More seats on

Air New Zealand

AIR New Zealand increased the number of seats on its long haul Pacific routes for the third time in November. Air New Zealand is adding 34 services between Auckland, Honolulu and Los Angeles, providing and additional 6500 seats over the summer months.

General manager Grant Lilley said the increase was necessary to cope with strong demand, as well as filling a void created when Continental Airlines ended its South Pacific services last month. Air New Zealand is also adding another 10 tras-Tasman services, between Auckland and Brisbane and Auckland-Melbourne.

Lilley said the extra trans-Tasman flights would meet Asian demands. Air New Zealand has obtained a Boeing 767 on short-term lease from the northern

hemisphere.

Fiji to launch

special cruise

AUSTRALIAN tourists will be flown into Fiji in three chartered jumbo jets later this year to mark the launching of a special island cruise that will see the liner Fairstar based temporarily at Lau toka in Fiji. The first flight is planned for May when 1250 Australian tourists will fly in to board the Fairstar for a multi island Fiji cruise. The cruise is being

organised by Burns Philp Shipping (Fiji)

Limited and P & O. Burns Philip

Shipping general manager Hari

Narayan said the cruise resulted from research conducted by the company which revealed that tourists were inter ested in eco-tourism rather than the normal sun-and-sand holiday.