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trade and unemployment were markedly bad throughout the year. If the decrease in sales of Government opium had meant that the population were at last turning against opium it would have been a matter for congratulation, but in fact the reverse was actually the case, and never before has opium smoking been so widespread.
Chinese Raw Opium.
14. In 1931 seizures of Chinese raw opium amounted to 22,994 taels in 338 seizures, while in the past year 52,749 taels were seized in 573 seizures. It was reported that the opium trade in the Kwangsi province, through which most of the opium from Yunnan and Kweichow must pass on its way to this Colony, was in a state of suspense for the last six months of the year, owing to a dispute concerning the amount and method of taxation, and there were reported to be no less than six million taels held up at or near the port of exit from that province. The 1932 crop in Yunnan had been a bumper one, estimated at 75 to 100 million taels, but the prices realised proved extremely disappointing to the farmers as well as embarrassing to the province as a whole, with the result that the Yunnan dollar already badly depreciated fell still more, and I was informed that at one time the price of a tael of opium there was equivalent to only five cents in Hong Kong currency. Very little new raw opium of the 1933 crop has yet been met with in seizures here, and there appears every likelihood of Yunnan opium becoming still cheaper before the 1934 crop comes on the market.
15. The retail prices of raw Chinese opium, at the end of the year in Hong Kong varied from $1.80 to $2.00 per tael for opium coming from Canton, and from $1.70 to $1.90 per tael coming direct from Wuchow the port of exit for the Kwangsi province. The actual difference in cost price at these two cities naturally would be slightly greater, as all Canton opium would be taxed first at Wuchow, while that coming direct would have only been taxed in Kwangsi, the opium being of the same quality, all coming from Yunnan or Kweichow. According to accounts of dealing in raw opium examined during the course of the year, it was at times possible to buy raw opium here in small quantities as low as $1.30 to $1.50 per tael.
16. The abundance of Yunnan opium as shown by the fall in price was fully confirmed by photographs which reached the Colony of huge opium convoys, and by accounts in the Press, for example, that on December 9th a huge convoy of 1,600,000 taels arrived at Poseh in Kwangsi from Yunnan, as the result of the settlement of the dispute over taxation.
17. Not only was opium cheap in Yunnan but in one of the Northern provinces the price in the country as paid to the cultivator was only 8 cents per tael. The year 1933 must therefore go down to history as the year of cheap opium throughout China.
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trade and unemployment were markedly bad throughout the year. If the decrease in sales of Government opium had meant that the population were at last turning against opium it would have been a matter for congratulation, but in fact the reverse was actually the case, and never before has opium smoking been so widespread.
Chinese Raw Opium.
14. In 1931 seizures of Chinese raw opium amounted to 22,994 taels in 338 seizures, while in the past year 52,749 taels were seized in 573 seizures. It was reported that the opium trade in the Kwangsi province, through which most of the opium from Yunnan and Kweichow must pass on its way to this Colony, was in a state of suspense for the last six months of the year, owing to a dispute concerning the amount and method of taxation, and there were reported to be no less than six million taels held up at or near the port of exit from that province. The 1932 crop in Yunnan had been a bumper one, estimated at 75 to 100 million taels, but the prices realised proved ex- tremely disappointing to the farmers as well as embarrassing to the province as a whole, with the result that the Yunnan dollar already badly depreciated fell still more, and I was informed that at one time the price of a tael of opium there was equivalent to only five cents in Hong Kong currency. Very little new raw opium of the 1933 crop has yet been met with in seizures here, and there appears every likelihood of Yunnan opium becoming still cheaper before the 1934, crop comes on the market.
15. The retail prices of raw Chinese opium, at the end of the year in Hong Kong varied from $1.80 to $2.00 per tael for opium coming from Canton, and from $1.70 to $1.90 per tael coming direct from Wuchow the port of exit for the Kwangsi province. The actual difference in cost price at these two cities. naturally would be slightly greater, as all Canton opium would be taxed first at Wuchow, while that coming direct would have only been taxed in Kwangsi, the opium being of the same quality, all coming from Yunnan or Kweichow. According to accounts of dealing in raw opium examined during the course of the year, it was at times possible to buy raw opium here in small quantities as low as $1.30 to $1.50 per tael.
16. The abundance of Yunnan opium as shown by the fall in price was fully confirmed by photographs which reached the Colony of huge opium convoys, and by accounts in the Press, for example, that on December 9th a huge convoy of 1,600,000 taels arrived at Poseh in Kwangsi from Yunnan, as the result of the settlement of the dispute over taxation.
17. Not only was opium cheap in Yunnan but in one of the Northern provinces the price in the country as paid to the cultivator was only 8 cents per tael. The year 1933 must therefore go down to history as the year of cheap opium throughout China.
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