Bombay, Mar. 28.
The Bombay Merchants Bank, a small concern 10,000,000, which was started 20 years ago, has suspended business.
The Shilotri Bank closed its doors last week.—Reuter. announces that the ff Board will immediately hold inquiry into the question of protection of Indian petroleum against 2 petroleum price war.—Reuter, London, Mar. 2T.
In the House of Commons to-day Mr, Thomas Johnston (Socialist: Dundee) asked whether cotton. grown in British East Africa was subsidized by public funds through the Empire Cotton Growing Association, and what proportion. of this cotton each year was exported to Japan?
Mr, F. G. Penny (Con: Kingston on-Thames) replied that the—expenditure, which was $4841 in Myasaland, Uganda and' North Rhodesia for the year ending March 31, 1927, had been incurred almost entirely with the object of improving the quality of the cotton produced, He added that 99,281 centals (cental: 100 Ib.) out of 790, centals exports from the Bi Eust African dependencies during 1926 had been consigned to Japan. The final figures for 1927 were not yet available, but for the first nine months of that year 429,840 ecntale had been exported from Kilindiné (Mombasa) of which 101,629 cents had been consigned to Japan, Mr, Johnston then asked if this meant that the cotton industry jo Britain was paying a subsidy to foreign competitors, Mr, F. G, Penny replied that the questioner could form his owa ce clusion In answer to questions, the Rt. Hon. Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, Pres ident of the Board of Trade, stated that the freight rate on raw cotton from Mombasa to Japan was 82/6 per ton of 40 cubic feet, aa compared with 40/- to the United Kingdom less 10 per cent, deferred redate, The President of the Board of Trade said that he had no information that subsidized Japanese lines were transporting raw cotton froma Mombasa to Japan free of freight, but he promised to make inquiries,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.