To the Editor of the "Nonmu-Cunxa Daily News"
Sim—Shanghal has always been heavily. interested in rubber: and the number of shareholders residing here whose incomes depend wholly or in part upon dividends from their rubber investments must. be very <The present restrictions which the Straits Government have imposed, as war measure, against the remittance abroad of Straits currency have considerably curtailed the amounts which the directors would, in the normal way, have recommended for distribution' out of proffs, which, incidentally, are now quite substantial, Neither 1 nor, Tam sure, any other shareholder, have any quarrel. with! the Straits' Government for having taken this necessary wartime measure, but the fact, -nevertheless, remains that considerable hardships have been imposéa upon shareholders, a result of the implementation, "The question therefore arises:" Is there any means whereby local shareholders may obtain relief from their present disabilities under the existing elreumstances T submit the following suggestion the hope that it may contain the germ of an idea which may result in some practicable scheme being evolved for the relief of local shareholders and would welcome the ce-operation of all those who have-any suggestions or femendations to contribute, Most Shanghai Rubber Companies at present have considerable cash balances in Malaya in Straits Currency and these are mounting and will continue to mount, Under normal cond!- tions these sums would have been distributed (o shareholders in the form of dividends, My suggestion is that these sums, which cannot now be distributed but would normally: have reached shareholders as dividends. be invested in per cent. War Loan, which would be earmarked as collateral security against the issue to shareholders of Sterling. Preference Shares bearing} interest at 244 per cent, per annum and redeemable by the Company, at their option, in ive years or Less, or, say, two or three years after termi: libation of the present, War.
These Preference shares, being cured as to 100 per cent, by British War Loan, should Gnd a ready market here and would relieve the finances of those who depend to a igreator or lesser extent upon rubber dividends for their living expenses.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.