Directory_and_Chronicle_1938 — Page 408

A10

CHINA

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With regard to shipping in China, reference to the Shipping tables appear- ing with this volume will show that the total of entrances and clearances at Chinese ports amounted to 145 million tons as compared with 144 million tons in the preceding year. The order of importance by flags was: British ship- ping, 57.3 million tons; Chinese shipping (excluding junks), 39.3 million tons; Japanese shipping, 24.9 million tons; Norwegian shipping, 4.5 million tons; American shipping, 3.7 million tons; German shipping, 2.6 million tons; and Netherlands shipping, 2.5 million tons. Of the total of 145 million tons of shipping entered and cleared, 45.2 million tons were entered from and cleared. to foreign ports as against 48.1 million tons during 1935, while 99.8 million tons as compared with 95.9 million tons for 1935 were entered and cleared coastwise. These figures do not include the tonnage of vessels plying under Inland Waters Steam Navigation Regulations.

Regulations. As regard

As regard shipping with abroad, the leading ports in China were: Shanghai, with 35.83 per cent of the total tonnage; Canton, with 12 per cent; Swatow, with 8.83 per cent; Tsingtao (Kiaochow), with 7.39 per cent; Amoy, with 4.97 per cent; Tientsin, with 4.54 per cent; and Kowloon, with 3.89 per cent. The following table further analyses the shipping trade, showing the percentage share of the total entrances and clearances taken by the three leading flags during the year under review:-

FOREIGN TRADE.

DOMESTIC TRADE.

TOTAL TRADE.

British Chinese Japanese

...

Per cent.

Per cent.

Per cent.

35.72

41 28

39.54

8.75

35.47

27.14

20.82

17.18

TRANSPACIFIC FREIGHTS

15.53

Freight rates from China to ports on the Pacific coast were revised as from the 16th April 1936, and again as from the 1st September 1936, while a new scale of rates will become effective as from the 1st May 1937. During the early months of 1936, in consonance with what was happening in the case of other world trade routes, a well defined change from the state of affairs prevailing in the Transpacific freight situa- tion since 1929, when the American trade boom came sharply to an end, began to manfest itself. Sudden heavy demand for freight space for the carriage of Pacific coast products to European countries, especially Canadian lumber to Great Britain, casused a heavy diminution in the volume of tramp tonnage available. This combin- ed with an active demand for vessels in many parts of the world at last enabled ship- owners to raise Transpacific rates both west-bound and east-bound to a level which would provide a reasonable margin of profit. Accordingly, it was decided, at the out- set of 1936, by the Transpacific Freight Bureau at Hong Kong and Shanghai to make a moderate increase in the majority of Transpacific east-bound rates to become effective in April 1936. As the improved world situation appeared to warrant a further increase, fresh rates, providing for a higher scale in many cases, were en- forced in September, and these rates would in all probability have been adhered to for a considerable time had it not been for the incidence of the longshorsemen's and maritime strike declared at the end of October 1936 all along the Pacific coast of the United States and at all ports on the Atlantic and Gulf seaboard. The strike quickly resulted in paralysing all American shipping and, to a lesser degree, vessel sailing under non-American flags. Tremendous financial losses were sustained by American Shipping interests, and it quickly became apparent that, even when a settlement was reached, it would be necessary, to make provision towards covering the increased operating expenses which would unfailingly have to be met when shipping services were resumed. Accordingly, the Bureau at Hong Kong and Shanghai decided that it was essential to make a fresh increase in rates, and a revised scale will become operative from Hong Kong, Shanghai, North China ports as from the 1st May 1937. The membership of the Transpacific Freight Bureau of North China was slightly changed during 1936 by the addition of the Yamashita Kisen Kaisha and the with- drawal of the Tacoma Oriental Steamship Company caused through the latter having decided to suspend for an indefinite period their participation in the Transpacific trade..