Ith March.
very well-considered and ex lent report by Mr. F. EL Taylor, which opens the annual Returns catist tory statement that the figures Trade for 1898, begins with the
for the past year prove again the tality of China's foreign commerce. Sporadic rebellions, Yellow. River floods, war clouds, a political situation full of menace, and the coup d'état at Peking all helped to disorganised trade; nevertheless, " the value "of the import trade surpassed all previous records, while the value of the e: port trade exceeded that of ey ry past year with the exception of 1897. The te volume of the trade was valued ay Hk. Ts. 368,616,483, which the highest on record. It is gratiig to. mow that, on the whole, the trade yielded satisfactory results. to those interested." That the trade has Deen so little affected by the dray backs mentioned is an indication the enormous expansion of which it is susceptible when official obstruction is withdraw vu and communications are improved. It is because the trade is so trif_ing in comparison with the size of the country in which it is carried on, that the convulsions noted have sv little effect on it.
Coming to revenue, Mr. Taylor points out that the pes trade, valued at Tls. 180,323,431, yielded in import duties THs. 5,729,908, or am_ad. ralovem percentage of 3.17, which is within a measurable of Free Trade. The total for the year was Ts. while the revenue in 1891, when the total value of the trade was less than two-thirds that of the trade of 189s, 18,021, This is because the majority of the duties are specific, representing 5 per cent "al ruloren when they were originally fixed. By the fall in silver the value of the goods imported and exported while the duties have remained the same; or, to state it in Mr.
ayloi's words: "'Tael prices have sen in consequence of a fall in exchange from 4s. 11d. in 1891 to 2s. 103d" (we are dealing throughout with Haikuan taels which are nearly 11} per cent better than the tael of commerce in Shanghai) in 1898: so that the value of the trade has increased in greater proportion than the bulk, and tael values]; have risen without a corresponding increase in tariff duties."
Mr. Taylor's section headed " Foreign Trade" is so well worthy of attention that we quote it in full So much foreign capital has been lately invested ini. China that the condition of the eral tude of the country, as an index to the national resources, is watched with a One page 7 of 1 Report will be found the usual table giving the annual values of the foreign trade from 183 to 1898. It will be observed that in mer year the value of the imports has exceeded pi, that of the exports. For the whole period to Europe for the service of loans, amount= the imports have amounted to Hk. Tis. ing during 1898 at average rates of ex-1,921,769,180, the exports to Hk. Tis. change to nearly Hk. Tls. 18,000,000, are 1,484,741,501, or an excess of imports over made through foreign banks by" the ports of Hk. Ts. 437,027.67 medium bills of exchange exports. "So, fur from silver being 34,000,000, These figures have given rise ported abroad, there was a in the strange belief during the year of 1k. Ts. jer to pay for the bal en been gravely auntry is approaching hankraptey. is pointed out that China has not only to pay for her imports, but find funds to meet re joe of Inns, al, and The de} 4 picture thus presented to the imagination has a tendency to destroy credit and prevents from investing in Chinese scow cell to. show that, position is Te must he ex plained, in the first place, that th en in the table on page 7 represent. th Value of goods on the Chinese market that ix to say, in the ease of imports, the value after they have paid duty to the Government anda profit to the Chinese buy ud in the ease exports, the value on the market before they have been suld to the foreign huve and paid export duty. At the of this Report will he found the figures for 1898 reduced to the value of impri the moment. of Janding and the val exports at the moment of I is, at the moment when 3 airly struck, Treated in this wa be found that imports amount we have an Moreover, notwithstanding oe ness at. the Treaty ports, information received from all prutts of the country points pric the may be confidently nets the whole of hour any depletion of ports. No doubt the Government is hand pressed for funds, but the country grows wealthier every year.
Mr. Taylor gos on to point out that the pressing difficulty with the Chinese Government is the facet that owing to the fall in silver, the intrinsic value of the copper cash (which is the popular currency of the country) as metal is greater than that of i angel metal (copper and zine) not less than Ths, 4, which does not include the cost of This condition has net only tracted coinage but has resulted in is disappearance of the coins, due melting down for the sake of the' oppe The number of cash exchanged for a twal Shanghiat_tus fatten since 1892 from to ho only.
value of gold exper being simply commodi Hk. Ts. 7,703,843, and the value of the tex sent to Siberi the Han i t Uk. The and export ver imy Moreover, a certain proportion of the im: ports, although arrived, were not sold at the end of the y it must be remembered that the figures which cane under the e ice Of the Customs de tot reprenont the whale of. Chi trade.
There is a junk traffic to Cor path of which we have raul Init very slowly the wetud to absorb every ye ran increase ing quantity of the white metal, The development of industries, the extension of railways, and the opening of mines are sure ty lead to an extension of trade, Some imports may suffer from Chinese competition, but none door shuts, another opens."
1 Tt is surprising that the p 'y should sometimes be heard that the Chinese will imand Tibet. It is estin ted, for in stance, that 20 million pounds of te: re sent ann li
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.