CHINA
531
The total carrying trade, foreign and coastwise, in 1927, was divided amongst the different flags as under:-
Entries and
Clearances
Tonnage Hk.
Values
Percentages Tonnage Trade
Japanese
27,105
35,745,535 Tls. 1,324,002,834
30.76
31'94
British
33,791
40,258,049
""
1,281,324,916
34.64
30'91
Chinese
79,538
21,636,391
>>
866,530,480
18'62
20.90
American..
4,844
5,577,115
""
190,026,795
4.80
4.58
German
955
3,260,717
""
103,993,047
2.81
2.51
Russian
193
216,683
""
100,327,726
0'19
2:42
French
1,504
1,894,614
""
98,626,667
1.63
2:38
Norwegian
1,959
2,932,578
""
66,549,823
2*52
1.61
Dutch
690
2,273,536
46,206,167
1.96
1.12
Italian....
1,327
992,695
""
43,277,147
0.85
1'04
Danish
213
529,937
""
9,957,154
0:46
0*24
Portuguese
...
.1,915
589,537
19
7,380,594
0.51
0.18
Swedish
236
296,964
งง
7,184,770
0*25
0'17
Mexican
2
2,366
91
1,427
Non-Treaty Powers.
3
4,068
77,320
Total......... 154,275
116,210,785
,, 4,145,466,867
100'00
100'00
Customs Revenue
The total Maritime Customs revenue collection in 1927, exclusive of the amount collected as surtax for famine relief, was Hk. Tls. 68,735,128. This figure represents a decrease of Hk. Tls. 9,387,149 when compared with the 1926 collection and is below the figure for 1925 by over 1 million Haikwan taels. In other words, continues Mr. de Luca, the debacle which had been feared for some years, on account of the general political upheaval in China, came true in the year under review, and merchants, farmers, and industrials were overcome by the force of so many obstacles adverse to trade.
The total amount collected under import duty was Hk. Tls. 34,903,322, which, when compared with the amount collected in the preceding year, means a decrease of Hk. Tls. 7,951,705, and when it is remembered that the fall in silver exchange must have enhanced the Haikwan tael value of goods on which ad valorem duty is collected, it is not difficult to realise that the decrease would have been still greater had exchange been more favourable to silver.
A total of Hk. Tls. 25,461,617 was collected on exports. Again a decrease is to be registered, although not so serious; at the 1927 figure falls short of that for 1926 by Hk. Tls. 802,170. The export trade, in fact, was decidedly more active, being somewhat encouraged by good harvests, favourable markets, and by the necessity to dispose of the exports in order to finance the imports,
The tonnage dues collection presents no very remarkable variations. Nevertheless, the amount collected was smaller than in the preceding year, Hk. Tls. 2,748,776 representing the total amount for 1927, as against Hk. Tls. 2,898,610 in 1926, a decrease of some Hk. Tls. 150,000. It is interesting to note, however, that tonnage dues collected on vessels under foreign flags receded from Hk. Tls. 2,588,894 in 1926 to Hk. Tls. 2,401,734 in 1927, while those collected on vessels under the Chinese flag advanced from Hk. Tls. 309,716 to Hk. Tls. 347,042. This increase, although slight, is surprising when one considers all the difficulties the Chinese mercantile marine had to contend with during the past year.
When studying the individual collection of each port, the effects on trade of the various political, military, and Communistic disturbances are more clearly seen. Taking only the major ports, those which collect annually over 1 million taels, and speaking in round numbers, we see increases at those ports, which were affected in a lesser degree, or not at all, by the above-mentioned adverse factors, and large decreases at those more severely affected. Therefore, an increase of Hk. Tls. 280,000 is to be recorded for Harbin, of Hk. Tls. 105,000 for Antung, of Hk. Tls. 341,000 for Dairen, and of Hk. Tls. 715,000 for Tientsin. Kiaochow, on the other hand, shows a fairly insignificant decrease of Hk. Tls. 25,000; but Hankow has
18*