"SHELL " TRANSPORT AND TRADING COMPANY
FINANCIAL STRENGTH MAINTAINED
THE annual general meeting of the " Shell " Transport and Trading Co., Ltd., was held on July ist in London, the Rt. Hon. Viscount Bearsted, M.C. (the chairman), presiding.
The following are extracts from the chairman's address, which was circulated with the report and accounts: The investments show a decrease, but the cash, on the other hand, shows an increase. This item has since been reduced by investment in Government loan. It will be noted that, as for many years past, the financial strength of the company has been maintained.
Again this year it is impossible to give you any indication of the present trend of the earnings of the companies in which we are interested. More markets have been closed to trade, and to the list to which I referred last year must now be added Rumania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Greece. Again, in these latter countries destruction of stocks and property must have taken place. We are still without information as to the extent of damage caused to our property in any of the occupied territories, but we fear it must be considerable. Hence the need for a cautious policy on the part of the operating companies. As a direct result of the war, the inevitable restriction in the volume of trade, of which I warned you last year, has unfor- tunately been realised.
I cannot give you details of the operation of the fleet or of the trend of our production. I must, however, again refer to the splendid performance of the officers and crews of the group vessels who, in common with the Merchant Marine generally, have continued to perform their duties regardless of risks.
POSITION IN' AMERICA
Turning now to the United States of America, operations during the year under review have, of course, been largely dominated by the war. The increase in demand for petroleum products as a result of the National Defence programme has required considerable expan- sion throughout the industry.
Demand for motor fuel reached a new peak in 1940 of 589,424,00o barrels, or an increase of 6.1 per cent. over 1939, largely as a result of which stocks at the end of the year were only slightly higher than at the end of 1939. Although during the first quarter of 1941 the usual increase of stocks occurred in anticipation of summer demand, withdrawals this year have been at a much faster rate than during the corresponding period last year, and the statistical position today is measurably stronger.
The report was unanimously adopted.
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