Plentiful Cotton
MOST people who live outside Lancashire and adjacent counties have very little idea of the importance of cotton. Although there are only about half a million operatives actually engaged in spinning and weaving, it is estimated that about three million persons are dependent more or less upon cotton manufacturing. Trade in Lancashire .for about five years has been in a depressed condition. There have been many causes for this state of affairs, but one very adverse factor is that cotton goods have been relatively dear compared with values for other commodities, with the result that export trade has been restricted. It is important to point out that 75 per cent. of the production of Lancashire is shipped abroad. • • The question of raw material supplies is of immense importance. The - world to a considerable extent is dependent upon the United States. In 1914 the crop was over 16 million bales, but in the following years production was very poor. There was a recovery in 1920 to 13i million bales, but in the following season there was a decline to less than 8 million bales, whilst in the following year the output was only 9i million bales. At that time many authorities were very pessi- mistic about the future. The efforts to grow cotton in the British Dominions were accelerated and numerous new ventures took place, especially in Africa. During the last eighteen months a striking :change has taken place in America. Farmers have made bigger efforts to grow cotton on a larger scale than ever known before, and there has been a large extension in the area under cultivation, the acreage having increased from 301 million in 1921 to over 48 million this year. Last season the. crop was practically a record at just over 16 million bales. This year the plants have made remarkable progress, with the result that the latest Government estimate is for a yield of 16,600,000 bales. If the weather in the belt continues favourable thete is a possibility of nearly 18 million bales being grown. Naturally this development has resulted in an important fall in values. Futures in Liverpool for. the' current month poS'it' ion are now below 7d. and for such a low price we have to-go back .to 1921.
It will be interesting to see what effect this startling :change will have upon Lancashire trade. • It must be remembered that cotton goods are used by the poorest people of the world, .chiefly in the East. For manu- facturers and merchants, therefore, it is a big advantage to be able to supply goods at low rates. Undoubtedly a very favourable -opportunity for business • of ••larger dimensions now presents itself. Compared with pre-War days,• Lancashire has to meet with more competition, especially from Japan and India, but stocks in the markets of the world are relatively low, and- it is reasonable -to expect that before very long dealers will replenish supplies. Lancashire has experienced many disappointmentS since the depression began, but there is now a feeling that a definite forward movement is near at hand. It is probable that 1927 will be the best year experienced by Lancashire since the boom of 1919-20.
FREDERICK W. TATTERSALL,
Previous page
