Page 325 - 5 Persian Trade rep BUSHIRE I_Neat

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In exports Iho proj-orlion of the values assigned payment in rupees, (ii) Banking establishments to
tLe United Kingdom rose from 3211 per cent. keep accounts in rupees, and pay sterling drafts
!° jht cent, while that of India fell conside- in 'rupees, when desired.
V fro!n 2$ per cent, to 13 per cent though the Only one bankruptcy during tbe period under
ri * j imports from India were £1 l-,b58 in excess report was noted, but considerable anxiety
*,f t i 's0 1910-11, uud the exports to India only prevailed as regards merchants involved with the
i i.' lc>s than in that year. China's share P. r.jian Zoroastriau firms, whose credit was at one
.•lus.’d from 8 to 17 percent, and that of time seriously menaced owing to their embarrass­
lieisviMy ^f001 *1 I,cr ccnt. to 10 percent. ment. As security for mortgages and loans several
•fjje aggr'galc proportion by value of tbe total well respected firms had, for some years, been ac­
of Uusbire, which lias been assigned to the cepting landed properties in Central and Southern
United Kingdom and India, has been of recent Persia, but in the present state of affairs, not only
yea-'*— do the inhabitants of these properties and dis­
Tons. tricts evade payment of land taxation, but the
K05 69 landlords and mortgagers decline with impunity
1906-07 62 to pay interest on loans.
1007-OS 77 The average monthly rates for Lank drafts on
1503-09 70 demand were:
1000-10 03
1010-11 70 London. Bombay.
1011-13 05
Reaefitting by tbe increases affecting cotton- 191 Per £1. Ter 100 IU.
goods, opium and grain,
F;;»arial %:ta*‘:3n in March 56 376
He Gill Port*. Customs revenue for the
Bushin; province amounted April 363
to £-*6,503 (on which £S9,C31 duties), a 6ubstan-
ti d increase on £61,22S for 1910-11. May S'i 370
Revenue for the.Southern Provinces, comprising June 5-11 366
the whole cr the Persian Ports of the Gulf, was
Ju’y 53 5 8 359
for 1-J11-12
£ August 53 3 8 357
EuiHrs Province . 9J,^:-3 September 52 7 8 354
E-ndar Abba* . 37,508
Arabi* xn . . 64,303 October . 511 314
November 61 3 8 3521
193.434
December 61 5 8 352
The distinguishing feature of the year vri< tbe
extreme shortage of coin in
tV-Vir-g a ;•! «rcha:<ge.
Bushire, which made itself 1912.
frit very much during the ru-b to buy grain in Oe- January . 55J 3731
tnter and November 1911, despite the large sums
of Krans ia coin re-imported from India, whither February . 54 7 8 364}
they drift down from the provinces of Kborasan
Jnd Scistan. This had the effect of bringing March 55 1 8 370J
deva exchange to an unnaturally low figure, for
liras intending to buy grain, though they have to The average for the year was approximately
Qake payments in coin, are strangely improvident 54T0 Krans per £1, anl 362*92 Kraus per 100
•° providing themselves with funds in advance. rupees.
Coin is also frequently diverted away from Comparative rates of exchange of recent years
Bushire by caravans of specie to Shiraz. have been i
It might be thought that a shortage of Persian
fluency might lead to a large employment of Per £1. Per 100 B«.’
which are always current in the Gulf Ports, March 190 >07 55-50 374-15
owing to dealings in rupees cash by brokers „ 1907-08 61-25 343-19
»ad Jewish money-changers the free circulation of „ 1903-09 54-54 362-9*
rJJ<es in the town is greatly hindered. The free „ 1909-10 5616 376-87
unMlution of rupees in the Gulf Ports is much to „ 19*0-11 54-80 367-7*
J* cvsired in the interests of British trade : a very „ 1911-12 5410 362-9*
. number of prices quoted far purchases and
^jaients to be made in ordinary life are inrupces^ This is one of the features of the uncertainty
An unsuccessful attempt was made to get sellers of business in Southern Persia, that in addition
0 S^in at the small district ports to accept rupees to an exchange, which can fluctuate as in 1911-12
instead of Krans at a fixed rate ; down the as much as 5 Krans (nearly 2 shillings per £1),
, MI" *
in the diroction of Lingah, where dealings discount rates on bills to the interior, eg., tlu
confined to Arab porta, rupees pass as the cur- most important market for Bushirc-Shiraz. &r»
v-n°*na^i*. ^‘ie aad demand for, rupees also very unsettled.
{?r<J.*tly incrcas; were (i) British Agencies In August 1910 rates on bills on Shiraz at 25
^;>bire to endeavour to «ell their goods against days after date had risen to 0 per cent.