The extraordinary success of the purchase of the Suez Canal
shares, viewed as a speculation, was brought out in a state- ment made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the House of Commons on Monday night, in answer to a question by Sir E. Ashmead-Bartlett. The shares were bought for .24,000,000 in 1875. Since then 23,805,000, or nearly the whole sum, has been paid off by the Sinking-fund. But the present value of the shares is £17,750,000. Therefore, there has been a net gain on the transaction of, say, seventeen millions and a half sterling. But in a year from now the shares will have a right to receive a dividend, which it is quite possible may be at the rate of 17 per cent. That is, the shares, the cost of which will have been redeemed, will be worth nearly three-quarters of a million a year. Since, however, we have 75 per cent. of the shipping that goes through the Canal, it is quite right that we should be deeply interested in the undertaking.
Previous page
