6
The above-named items accounted for 60 per cent. by value of the 1922 importa for nearly 70 per cent. of the 1923 imports and about 55 per cent. of the 1924 imports. The remaining imports represented roughly the same aggregate value in each of the last two years.
The imports of Chinese produce into Canton included the following principal items :-
(Quantities in thousands.)
Commodity and Unit of Quantity.
1922.
1923.
1924.
Ground nuta, kernels
lbs.
Ground-nut oil
248,142 22,217
242,807 29,869
H
Rice
1,461
63,783
239,825 27,173 355,130
Beans, yellow
+1
Wheat flour..
135,167 15,420
109,619
95,775
tons
46
11,824 78
7,078
91
Coal and Coke Firewood
Large quantities: amount unknown.
The variations in the imports into Canton in the different seasons are shown for rice in the following table, relating to gross imports from all sources, and showing the figures for 1925 so far as available
(Quantities in thousand lbs.)
1922.
1923.
1924.
1925.
Periode.
January-March
3,923
April-June
112,209
271,861 199,522 308,612 922,167
July-September
185,405
255,421
118,439
162,595 215,747 72,878
October-December ..
121,917
241,809
85,436
Year
423,454 1,057,203
720,564
For Groundnuts, the following statement shows the variations during 1924 and the first three quarters of 1925 in the imports of Groundnut kernels from other Chinese ports into Canton :-
Jan.-March
April-June
July-Sept.
Oct.-Dec.
(Quantities in thousand lbs.)
Period.
1924.
1925.
95,260
71,677
74,960
57,681
31,851
54,875
38,254
7
Appendix No. 2.
..........
FINANCIAL PRESSURE
NOTE BY MR. HAWTREY.
In case of a blockade of Canton it is unlikely that financial measures can play any but a subsidiary part.
If there were a state of war, the non-Chinese banks might be prohibited from giving any direct assistance to banks and traders in Canton and from financing movements of goods in contravention of the blockade; but such a prohibition is likely to be difficult to enforce. European bankers are dependent on native compradores for understanding bills and documents. Communications among Chinese banks and financial houses in different parts of China work efficiently, though slowly Canton traders would find indirect outlets for their merchandise, and credits would be opened for it in favour of traders at other ports; the banks could only guard themselves against such evasions by making vexatious enquiries. The less scrupulous a European bank is, the more of this doubtful business it will do, to its own profit and the loss of its more conscientious competitors.
No doubt the native banks are in some degree dependent on the European banks and can (sometimes at any rate) be embarrassed by the withdrawal of facilities. If Canton merchants are cut off from oversea markets, they will have to receive advances, which the native banks will find difficulty in providing. The essential fact is the unsaleability of the merchandise, which makes it bad security for an advance. The difficulty may be surmounted by an advance from a Chinese bank to the merchant on bis general credit, and an advance from a European bank to the Chinese bank on its general credit. It is the latter that needs to be prevented. In many cases the Chinese bank's credit will anyhow not be good enough; but the greater the number of intermediaries, the less likely is this to be so at the last stage. Hence the difficulty about credit facilities being given by indirect routes.
If there is no state of war, there may be difficulty about imposing any prohibition at all. Some of the banks might agree voluntarily to abstain from certain classes of business, but this is very unsatisfactory unless all competing bank. are included.
Legislation could perhaps be obtained in Hong Kong, but this would only touch transactions in the colony.
Treasury Chambers, S.W. 1,
March 20, 1926.
(Initialled)
R. G. H.
358
The shipping entered and cleared under General Regulations was dominantly under the British flag, the figures of Ocean and River Steamers for 1922, 1923 and 1924 being:-
1922.
1923.
1924.
No
Tons.
No.
Tons.
No.
Tons,
Ocean Steamers—
British
Japanese
Portuguese..
Chinese
822 398
1,089,626 483,035
273
Other
139
Tota!
River Steamers—
British
:
270,112 126.088
1,627 1,968,861 2,670
1,178 537 47 393 515
1,554,914 618,753 18,257 371,714 336,195 501
2,899,833 2,351
998 574
1,812,107
708,675
63
32,563
215
280,550
410,207
2,744,102
Japanear Portuguese.
Chinese Other
2,243 1,789,090 2,598
484 247,428 772 954
502,542 444
8,079,022
360,078 183,104
3,450 6
4,062,034
958
2,544 418.191
B
1,752
88
18,618
Total ..
3,651
2,839,060 3,814
3,572,204
4,510 4,498,139
!
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