Addressed to the chase National Bank of New York

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Part of The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

Title: Addressed to the chase National Bank of New York
Creator: W. R.
Language: English
Year: 1934
Rights
Abstract: How is it that such a bank is so little aware of the rank of these islands in U. S. overseas exports?
Fulltext: January, 1934 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 7 Addressed to the Chase National Bank of New York How is it that such a bank is so little aware of the rank of these islands in U. S. overseas exports? Woiu.D Tiiai.e: l’roi (Gold Dollars) Gentlemen: You publish The Index, for copies of which we are grateful because it is a first rate publication in its field and often serves to inform and guide the Journal about economic matters. What consistently disappoints us in The Index is its lack of attention to Philippine commerce with the United States. Thus the December issue has a very informative paper on Milk. The Largest Single Source of Farm Income. You say that milk today is 25% of total American farm income, and that during the 1924-1929 period "dairy farmers received a total average annual income of more than SI,900,000,000, an amount greater than the gross value of any other agricultural product.” Obviously then, milk markets are vital to the American farmers as well as to the middlemen who merchandise the milk. This being so, the Philippine milk market is important; it is averaging monthly the value of .$206,500 or $2,478,000 a year. Your total for dairy product values is SI,900 million. This market is an outlet, and that during a worldwide de pression, for $2.5 million for dairy products sold here dur ing a year. That, surely, is worth notice. However small in comparison with the total it may be, it is a large and constant market. You will know better than we the number of dairy farms whose output the Philippine market consumes. Then in December you review with great clarity De clines in International Trade. Here again, we hold, you might have been conscious of the Philippines. We repro duce your tabulation of world trade, because it is interesting and is recorded in gold: our readers can therefore compare it with tables set out in depreciated values. In this paper you quote Farrell, an economist, as saying: "The fact that increasing industrialization abroad may tend to restrict our exports has no foundation in our past experience. Our best markets are those of highly industrialized countries. Although this depression has brought such a sharp decline in our export trade, Europe continues to be our leading market. Nor are our exports to Europe, as some have assumed, mostly crude products and raw foodstuffs. During 1932 more than 40% of our exported manufactured goods were shipped to Europe compared with about 20% to Latin America. Europe also during this period took 47-1/2% of our semimanufactures and 36% of our finished manufactures.” That must be accepted as true. But there is a comparison that would have reflected much credit on the Philippine market, the comparison of total purchases by countries during the depression with their respective purchases prior thereto. This would have shown the Philippine market holding up remarkably. We think it important for great American banks concerned with international trade to be aware of these things respecting the Philippines. So much doubt involves our future trade relations with the United States-that a Philip pine commission now in Washington suggests organization of a joint economic commission to deal with questions as they arise, to counsel the United States and the Philippines intel ligently. Such a precaution this Journal has often advocated, one reason being that ignorance about this market persists even in great metropolitan centers, and in their greatest banks, where enlightenment as to the real facts is most to be expected. Your article on world trade deplores the barriers that hamper it, you should therefore try to see to it that unwarranted barriers do not block this market off; and this whether in dependence for the islands comes or not. We here, speaking generally, concur in the main precept of your article (that barriers to overseas commerce throughout the world have been made absurdly difficult and benefit would result all round from their moderation) without at all disparaging the Roosevelt intranational policy that looks toward more prac tical and mutually beneficial relations in trade with Mexico, Central America and South America. We of course realize here that conditioning factors in the international policy are the Monroe doctrine and the policy that is fundamental to protection of the Panama canal: a waterway through which the bulk of our exports reaches the United States and most of our imports from the United States are delivered. But we do think that any upbuilding of ocean trade, and export-im port trade generally, ought to begin with what is already established; and that the Philippine trade, already large and well established, ought to be conserved. What may be done, for instance, for Cuban sugar—in which we note Chase National is much interested—ought not to pa ralyze Philippine sugar and wipe out trade the United States already enjoys. If, as you logically contend, an in ternational exchange of goods and services is a stable and beneficial influence on industry (in which case it can, and should, be squared with intranational trade), then the more far-flung, the more dispersed, it is, the more its risks will be distributed and the sounder it will be. All of which is ample reason for you to evidence awareness of America’s large trade with the Philippines. Naturally we don’t look kindly upon an isolation policy for America, but are you yourselves fully prepared to defend a non-isolation policy while you remain either uninformed about, or indifferent to, America’s established commerce here, over the widest seas in the world? If, as already said, total American trade by countries, were traced through the depression years, how well the Philippine trade holds up would be revealed. The Philip pines’ relative position in America’s overseas trade through a series of years is appended: Since 1929 Philippine farm commodity surpluses giving rise to purchasing power for imports have been at very low prices, and in this issue of the Journal the International Harvester Philippines Seller to U. S. Buyer From U. S. 1927................ 16th 12th 1928................. 16th 12th 1929................. 15th 11th 1930................ 14 th 9th 1931................. 12th 7th 1932 . 4th 9th 1933 (9 months) 3rd 8th (Please turn to paijc Ki) 16 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL January, 1934 Addressed to the Chase ... (Continued from page 7) Company reports the islands’ prime farm com modity, Manila hemp, “unquestionably selling below cost of production.” But despite this, the trade has held up well; in fact, it is to be envied of all trade the United States enjoys overseas. Examine it ever so closely, you will perceive it is a good trade as well as large. It does not much engage the heavy industries, essentially it is trade in goods for immediate use and consumption; it is a trade in those very products of American in dustry that economists agree distribute wealth most equitably and widely: first of all, to thou sands of farmers producing the raw products, then to widely dispersed shareholders in mod erately capitalized concerns. We have es timated here that our demands in these goods keep a city the size of Kansas City, Mo., pro fitably employed at all times. You will see main Philippine imports listed in the back of this issue (as in all issues of the Journal), but Oh Yeah? One Fair One to the Other.— “It’s so long since I’ve been in a taxi I wouldn’t know how to defend myself!’’ —Cut and comment from Judge. GORDON DRY The heart X TVT of a good vj 11N cocktail ROBERTSON’S Scotch Whisky for Good Highballs Kuenzle & Streiff SOLE AGENTS Main Office: Branch Office: 343 T. Pinpin 44-48 Isaac Peral Tel. 2-39-36 Tel. 2-17-62 Branches: Cebu. Iloilo and Zamboanga Also distributors for Alhambra Cigars here are a few typical ones: Cottons, $1,250,372 a month during 12 months; gasoline, $193,816 a month; automobiles, $217,734 a month; meat products, $107,193 a month; coal oil, $86,093 a month; crude oil, SI 14,090 a month; tobaccos (mainly cigarettes), $116,568 a month; electrical machinery, SI55,440 a month; wheat (lour, $186,924 a month; and a total of all imports, S6,160,853 a month. This is but a beginning of what this market can do. But of course, it will not thrive its best unless it is given attention in New York. (Sgd.) IP. /?. DECEMBER SUGAR REVIEW By Geo. H. Fairchild New York Market At the opening of the month under review, the improving tone of the market was reflected in the "futures” quo tations on the Exchange, recording from 4 to 5 points gain over those at the close of the previous month. These quotations remained practically stationary throughout the early part of the month with but slight fluctuations. As a result of the heavy demand by refiners to fill their immediate requirements, large premia were paid for prompt shipment Cubus as compared with Philippine sugar. Lnrge quantities of Philippine sugar were sold during the first week for DecemberJanuary, January-February and February-March shipments at prices ranging from 3.15 cents to 3.20 cents while sales of prompt-shipment Cubas were effected at 1.30 cents. The buying interest shown by refiners lan guished at the close of the first week and this condition persisted for the following weeks and although an improved tone developed in the latter part of the month, the holiday season checked any substantial business being trans acted. Quotations on the Exchange during the second week were from 9 to 10 points lower than the highest auotations recorded during the preceding week, while prices of actual sugar sagged to 3.19 cents for Cubas duty paid as compared with 3.25 cents the previous week. At the close of this week a sale of 2,000 tons Cubas to the U. K. was effected at the equivalent of 0.87 cents f. o. b. The price of refined sugar was reduced on the 8th from 4.50 cents to 4.40 cents per lb. During the third week, holders’ offerings at 3.14 cents and 3.10 cents did not attract buyers. Trademarks Registered [Continued from page 11) Reg. No. 11467. Trademark consisting of the word “NEET" for depilatories, deodorants and anti-perspirants, registered on September 14, 1933, by Neet, Incorporated, of Chicago, Illinois, U. S. A. Reg. No. 11468. Trademark consist ing of the word "DIAL” with a design, for smoking to bacco, registered on September 16, 1933, by Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corporation CHARTERED BANK OF INADiAD gahuintaral Capital and Reserve Fund............................................... £6,000,000 Reserve Liability of Proprietors................................... 3,000,000 MANILA BRANCH ESTABLISHED 1872 SUB-BRANCHES AT CEBU, ILOILO AND ZAMBOANGA Every description of banking business transacted. Branches in every important town throughout India, China, Japan, Java, Straits Settlements, Federated Malay States. French Indo-China, Siam, and Borneo; also in New York. Head Office: 38 Bishopsgate, London, E. C. C. E. STEWART. Manager, Manila Quotations on the Exchange, however, remained practically unchanged, with slight improvement on the 22nd owing to the news that President Roosevelt had ratified the London Silver Agree ment. At the close of the month, “futures" quotations recovered all the losses on the Ex change, while prices of actual sugar remained firm at 3.15 cents, at which level quite large parcels of afloat Philippines were disposed of. During the month it was reported that the Tariff Commission had recommended a reduc tion of the U. S. duty on Cuban sugar from 2.00 cents to 1.45 cents, while reports from other sources mentioned the possibility of increasing the Cuban preferential from 20 to 50 per cent, or from 0.50 cents as at present to 1.25 cents per pound. Futures: Quotations for future deliveries on the Exchange fluctuated during the month as follows: High Low Latest 1.21 1.18 1.19 1.25 1.10 1.19 1.30 1.17 1.28 1.36 1.24 1.33 1.41 1.29 1.37 1.46 1 34 1.43 1.48 1.40 1.48 December, 1933........................ January, 1934........................... March......................................... May............................................ July............................................ September.............................. December................................... Stocks: Stocks in the United domKing, United States, Cuba, Java and European statistical countries as reported on December 20th were 6,773,000 tons as compared with 7,467,000 tons in 1932 and 7,355,000 tons in 1931. Philippine Sales: Sales and resales of Philippine sugar were reported in New York during the month, as follows: Cents per Lh. Long Tons From To Sales..................................... 82,500 3.15 3.20 Resales................................. 10,000 3.15 3.20 In addition to the above, there were sales of 19,000 tons for shipment February to June, price to be average price five days before and five days after arrival. Local Market: A substantial volume of business was done locally during the first week following the activity in the New York market. Exporters' quotations during the week advanced to P7.30 per picul but soon returned to the previous level of P7.20. Throughout the fol lowing week small transactions were steadily made on the basis of 1*7.15—1*7.25. In sym pathy with the declining trend of the American market, local quotations sagged during the last two weeks to 1*7.00 and 1*6.90, at which level only small business was consummated. Chop Prospects: The following data covering the report of 30 Centrals up to December 31st indicates an aggregate production of 449,688 metric tons, constituting 39.10 per cent of the Centrals’ estimates of their 1933-1934 crop: (Export) Limited, of London, England. Reg. No 11469. Trademark consisting of the word “BREVO” for vegetable, animal and mineral substances in their natural state or elaborated, for preparation and manufacture of cosmetics, etc., registered on September 16, 1933, by Daggett <fc liamsdell, of New York City, N. Y., U. S. A. Reg. No. 11470. Trademark consisting of the word “PRESIDENT” with a design, for hair pomade, perfumes, oil or essences, lotions, (Please turn to page 26) ESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL