Annual General Meeting The 11th annual general meeting of shareholders in the Java Consolidated Rubber & Coffee Estates, Ld., was held on Monday at the offices of the secretaries and general managers, Messrs. J. A. Wattie Ca, Ld., Mr, A. J. Welch presiding.
In the course of his speech the chairman said The year's output of rubber fell short of the estimate by 68,600 Ib. this shortage was almost entirely attributable to the restriction of tapping enforced during the concluding months of the year, although the copious rainfall also caused a considerable loss of latex.
1920 was the wettest year in the history of the Company, the result being that the expenditure on weeding and the upkeep of roads and watercourses Was more expensive than usual.
Thinning out was continued during the year and a total of 13,431 trees were removed from the gardens on both estates. This work will be continued during 1921 as there are still too many trees to the acre, but the work has now reached a stage where it is possible to pick and choose and future removals will only be made after the most careful selection.
The visiting agent in his last report stated that the gardens on both estates were in first class condition and that, thanks to the increased light and air let into the gardens by the thinning out that has already been done, the trees were practically free from disease.
The profit for the year as disclosed by the working account was F.93,107.90 as compared with a profit last year of F.553,936.21. This disappointing result is entirely attributable to the extreme depression ruling in the rubber market at the end of the year, which necessitated "valuing our unsold stock of rubber, amounting to 593,648 Ib., at only 30 cents, or, say, sixpence per pound. I hope however that when this stock has all been sold it will be found to have realized considerably more than the valuation placed upon it in the accounts, As regards the financial position of the Company on December 31, 1920, the liquid assets of the Dutch Company exceeded the cash liabilities by F.108,414.40, or say approximately Tls. 57,000, whilst the cash liabilities. of the Shanghai Company were Tis, 14,444 in excess of the liquid assets, the net result being that the combined Companies started the new year with a surplus of liquid assets amountimately Tls. 42,000, the bulk of which, however, was represented by unsold stocks of rubber.
There were no questions, and the formal resolutions were adopted.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.