/58/1934.
66
Enclosure No. 1. to Mr. Pelham's despatch No. 57 of 5th July, 1934.
Extract from Speech by Mr. Stanley H. Dodwell, Chairman of the Hongkong Brewers and Distillers Company Limited at the Annual Meeting of the Company held on 14th June, 1934.
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"A few particulars of the duty charged on imported beer
in protection of home-brewed article in these neighbouring
countries will give you some idea of the difficulties we shall
be up against. In China the duty, including surtax, amounts
to 88 per cent ad valorem, or, say $14. a case, or $2.30 a
gallon, on beer of Pilsen type, as against an excise duty of
only $3.00 per case or 50 cents a gallon on beer brewed in
China. In Indo-China there are three rates of duty 56 francs
per 100 litres, or 22 gallons, for beer from certain European
countries, 112 francs for Japanese beer, and 224 francs for
beer imported from other countries including Hongkong.
this duty of 224 francs per 22 gallons or, say, 10 francs
(Hongkong $1.66) per gallon, beer brewed in Indo-China pays an
excise duty of only 7 francs per 22 gallons plus 2 per cent
ad valorem - in all approximately Francs 7.80 or Hongkong
per 22 gallons, or 6 Hongkong cents per gallon. In Japan, the
duty on imported beer is 100 per cent ad valorem.
amounts to about Yen 3.33 per gallon on an average, as against a
excise duty of only 63 sen per gallon Japanese beer.
This
Against
1.30
In Ceylon
the import duty is Rupees 1,05 per gallon, while the duty on
locally brewed beer is only 5 cents per gallon.
In Hongkong our beer pays the same duty as
imported beers, except for a small difference amounting to about
a cent per pint bottle, which disappears directly exchange
reaches 1/84. These figures give you an idea of the preference
and encouragement given to the brewer in neighbouring countries.
In Hongkong, the only preference accorded to our enterprise
has been shown by the discerning beer-drinkers of the Colony on
the/