The report for the half-year ending the 31st of March states At the date of the last report it was stated that to lange passenger and mail steamers were under construction—viz., the India and China, the first named vessel having been contracted for with Messrs. Harland and Wolff, of Belfast. The India has been Inunched, and. will commencement of the next passenger sea-be able to take up her station at the
son. The Chine will be launched next month, and will follow rapidly in the wake of her sister ship. It appeared to the directors that it would be advantageous to contract for two additional ships of this important character in anticipation of future requirements, and a contract was arranged with Messrs. Caird and Ca. to build a duplicate and triplicate of the India, to be called Eqypt and Arabia, The Company have thus under construction four mail steamers of 8,000 tons and 11,000 horse-power, which are the largest vessels they have as yet built.
directors also invited tenders for two large steamers of a purely cargo-carrying type, intended more particularly for service in the Australian trade, and the orders were entrusted to—ri:., Messrs. Caird and Ca. and Palmer's Shipbuilding Company respectively. These vessels wi be named the Candia and Socotra. When the ships now under construction are delivered, the shipping under the Com: pany's flag will embrace a tonnage of upwards of 294,000 tons.
The present mail contracts terminate in January, 1898, and the Postmaster-General has invited tenders for new and improved services to take effect after that date.. It is almost unnecessary to state that the performance of the India, China, and Austra-lion services, under the existing contracts, has been far ahead of the conditions actu: ally required in point of speed. carry out a more onerous mail service in the insidering the probability y of having to future, the directors were led to believe that the issue of the remainder of the De-venture Stock would be " prudent operation. The amount issued the year before last was £500,000, and tenders were invited for the remaining £300,000 in 34 per cent. stock, with the result that it was subscribed several times over, and allotted at a considerable premium. ' The Company is, therefore, now in a position to undertake any extension of business that circumstances may render necessary.
the directors are' glad to state that the passenger traffic shows, on the whole, an improvement over that of the corresponding period of last year. But the freight returns are by no mens satisfactory." Rates have declined from all parts.of the East, even from the low figures reached during the last financial year. In Bombay an Calcutta the average rates would probably work out at fully 30 per cent less. than at the same time last year, notwithstanding the fact that the exports from these important centres of trade have been very large. The supply of tonnage has, however, been greatly in excess of the demand, and this condition of affairs has also prevailed in Australia, and in a lesser degree in China, The consequence of this downward ten: dency in homeward rates has been a hardening in outward freights, which have been generally higher, although by no means to such an extent_as to compensate for the homeward deficit. Some improvement has taken place in exchange, which, in ordinary circumstances, would have benefited the Company; but up to the present time that result has not been attained, owing to the fact that a somewhat larger proportion than usual of the Company's receipts has been intercolonial, and therefore paid in silver. But on-the whole the Company's
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.