Page 286 - 5 Persian Trade rep BUSHIRE I_Neat

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districts dean wheat enn l*c li.nl at a slblitly higher chests (the largest export in recent years from
price, and n mixture of 5 per cent, barley is the Ilu* hire was 3,000 cwts.).
average quality sold. The loss to Perrisn revenue ns the result of th?
to* .1 prohibition in China may Ik' estimated at iiior,
BtnLF.T. t'.;n £12,000 annually and the average nnr.ual l#,*,,
The export of Bushirc barley in 191011 was almost to Persian commerce ns £100,‘Ah) to £15-.\U00-4
entirely to Hamburg where it seems to find a firmer severe blow.
market than in London, partly no doubt because of The season 1911-12 will, however, be particularly
favourable terms of shipment, and because of ship­ unfortunate for Persia ns the exceptionally severe
ment in bulk which for various reasons is not the cold of the past- winter has ruined the crops, more
usual practice «J British shippers in Bushirc. Local particularly near Ispahan and Yezd, and rapine
prices rc-c in May 1910 from 81 Kraus (3s. Id.) to plunder and burning in Fare.
nearly 10 Kraus (3«. 8f.) per Hnriiem nnn of 121 lbs. For chests of 110 lbs. prices at Ispahan started in
but for the rest of the year continued at about 8-8J June-.Iul v 1910 to 150 Tomans (about £82), rose from
Frans. It is calculated that the barley harvest of August to Deceinlvr to500 and 520 Tomans (£93-96).
1911 in the grain-growing districts of the province front which point they dropped a little. Actual
north of Buriiirv viidded about 7.1HK1 tons, and there
is nl-o a ronsi ierablo quantity to come in this year buying prices then approximated S$. 1 Of. per lb. frr
crude opium, ami 13$. 5<f. per lb for prepared opium
from districts to the cast nnd south. With favour­ plus expense of prejviration.
able prices in the United Kingdom, and a likely
rise owing to poor prosjMvts of the Indian harvest, Shiraz opium prices were apparently lower fio^
there is every reason why not only all barley separa­ August 1910 to February 1911, but purchases wen
ted from wheat should l*e exported by British firms, King made at 520 Tomans (£9G) iu March 1911.
but also special purchases of barley made.
Since then owing to crop reports opium has ad­
vanced to S00 and 700 Toutans iu Shiraz and Ispahan
Opicm.
(£150-130).
The total export decreased from 88 :o 37 tons, of
which 21 ton- to China and 11 tons :o the United The course of tb.* London market was net favour­
King* -m. This represents a great l«-s to Persian able from March till the er.2 of the summer os then
trade, for in farmer years the export st-:*od at:— were no buyers of Persian opium at the pri'cs askd
CL ini. United :\ r it, although prices fell from 20s. per lb. ir. March to
Kingdom. 10$. in June. The crop ir. Turkey was reported as verr
Toes Tons. gxnl, yielding several thousand eases, and tbi
1907(3 43 147 further depressed the demand for Persian opion.
190309 96 CC Prices went down to 12$. in July, and shipments were
1900-10 63 30 diverted to Hongkong. From September till Janu­
ary 1911 sales were rarely above 15$. From January
Although prices in Hongkong shewed enormous , -0 }jarcb thev graduallv became firmer and rose to
advances, exporters from Persia were little able to j jq,., and after the end of the oeriod owing to reports
benefit, as tie introduction of Persian opium into : c.f the Turkish crops not coming up to expectation
China, under the Convention as to the annually res- i 5cd of tLe fjiJlire o{ the Persian crops near Ispahat
tncted import, remained practically in the hands of ‘ 2nd yCzd, prices rose to 20$.
one or two Hongkong firms, and a large number of |
chests from Bushire were thus lying unsold at the It is to be feared that the credit and financial
end of the year. standing of several Persian traders in opium in tb
south will shrink considerably in the future,
The subsequent announcement that the introduc­
tion of ooth Persian and Turkish opium would be losses made in other lines were usually Landsomdj
altogether prohibited from the bcgincing of 1912 will retrieved in opium.
hav« a still more damaging effect. Re-shipments
from Hongkong to Loudon are already taking place, Gum, rxsoluble axd tragacaxtel
and ihe only other apparent recourse of Persians A favourable demand led to much speculate?
owning goods there is to sell for the small Formosa buying of insoluble gura, the export to India alos
market, though one or two recent shipments from ‘ being nearly 1,000 tons. This was the heavies
Bus hire to Singapore direct predict that a market may export for many years :—
be established there. i Toe*
The production of Persian opium was estimated ; 1907-08 4$
formerly at about 6,000 chests per annum, but by \ 1908-09 7*5
1907-03 the average was some 4,000; and the London ; 1909-10 95
market is rarely likely to take as much as 1,500 • 1910-11