To revert to the past year's operations. From the point of view of profit-earning, the period was one in which heavier taxation had to be berne, expenses of a new form in respect of A-R.P. requirements had to be met, and most items entering into that vast omnibus account known as general charges were influenced adversely, True it is that, as in the ist War, many sub-offices have been closed for the duration, but the economy thus effected is relatively small in the aggregate. That profits showed a decline as compared with earlier years is not surprising; that the decline was not greater speaks well for the conservatism previously displayed.
What is the position of the resources controlled by the clearing banks? In what way have they been affected by the changed conditions of the past year? A statement presented below sets out as at the close of business on December 30, last the liabilities of the banks to customers as represented by the current and deposit accounts, and it also shows the main items of assets arranged in the order of their liquidity. These figures alone cannot be fully appreciated unless they can be set against strictly comparable returns for earlier periods, and these we are enabled to add.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.