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48 gular sailings at fixed dates has ad- vantages for both shipowners and shippers. In times of depression, the system operates unfavorably for the owner. He hesitates long before he will lay up a regular liner, if only because he considers it important to provide tonnage for such shipments as his regular supporters may be able to make. Heavy losses are known to have been made on individual voyages of cargo liners last year. It was common for vessels to leave the United King- dom with only one-fourth or one-third of their cargo space filled. Often vessels which, in prewar years, would have sailed with large cargoes, left in bal- last. Reliance, therefore, to a greater extent than ever, had to be placed on the homeward freights, mainly on food- stuffs or raw material for manufacture. General reductions took place in the outward freights. They were notably in the North American, South American, Levant, Indian, South Afri- can, Australasian and Far Eastern routes. In the Indian and Far Eastern trades two reductions were made in the summer and early autumn months within a few weeks of each other. The “reductions, it was explained, at the time, were made with a view to fur- thering the British export trade. They were really made essential by lower freights which were being quoted lines, notably by continental made, . MARINE REVIEW companies also are being | financially supported by the German government, with a view to the re-establishment of the German mercantile marine in - its prewar services. For the owners of ordinary cargo tonnage the year was a trying time. The position of the older ownerships may be said to be, as a rule, still sound. Some of them have vessels re- maining from the prewar period and so built on a comparatively low basis of costs. They have also been trained to proceed cautiously, to work out in British Shipping Index PRICES OF REPRESENTATIVE SHIP- PING SECURITIES IN 1921 Highest Lowest Securities Geses ad fo s..d Cunard £1 shares.... 1 ye 0 15 6 (Jan. 6) (Nov. 2) Furness, Withy £1 SHAPES sss ets oeiwce cre Ais 5 a9. 0 19 0 (Jan. 6) (March 1) P. & O. deferred £100 SPOCK fis teed assets 3780.0 258710. 6 (Sept. 26) (Nov. 3) Royal Mail S. P. i : £100: stock 202.564: LOO 0808 77:.1.07 0. (Jan. 12) (Nov. 30) SHIP CONSTRUCTION IN UNITED KINGDOM IN 1921 Gross tons 1,524,000 Tonnage launched in year....... 461,000 Tonnage launched in last quarter: Tonnage commenced in last quarter 54,900 *Tonnage building Dec. 31...... 2,640,000 *Nominal figure, includes 722,000 tons of construction suspended. Active work going forward shows decline in year of about 1,800,000. tons. SHIPPING MANAGEMENT FACTS IN 1921 February, 1922 have, in the ordinary course, have suc- ceeded them, were lost in the war. Consequently, there has come into — existence a new class of owner, fre- quently young and optimistic, but lack- ing in experience and mature judgment. Some of these owners bought their ships at high prices, regardless of the views expressed by the wise heads that a fall in freights and values must ensue. For a time, when freights were high, such newcomers to the business could not help making money. Every cargo offered meant a profit, so proba- biy the managers scarcely troubled to work out detailed estimates of profit and loss. If they did so they likely lacked the knowledge to make trust- worthy estimates. When the slump set in such firms were hit: hard. Capital had been invited from. the general pub- lic, and many investors responded on the strength of the inflated earnings of the war period. Many of those who subscribed mew capital could’ not have realized that they were speculating heav- ily. Disaster has overtaken some of these new formations, and in at least one case the seller of the fleet at high prices was able under a mortgage to regain possession of the fleet, which was then sold again for a comparatively small sum. Companies which had been heavily capitalized to buy ships at high prices could not afford to stand by and keep their vessels unem- Dutch and German companies. Highest Lowest ployed. Some of the older The revival of German ship- Bod ee 5 : : a6 : Ce Time Charter Rate: Ordinary’ British ROMDAEIES with substantial r ping has been a real thing, and steamers per ton deadweight per month. 0 10 0 0 46 serves, could afford to do so. : Voyage Rates: * the lower working costs at con- Piate-United Kingdom grain, per ton..... 322020 0 16 6 Even for the older and most = Australia-United Kingdom grain, per ton. 3 00 2 100 : : tinental pore the far lower Cuba-United Kingdom sugar, per ton.... 10 $5.50 efficiently managed companies, wages paid to continental crews, South-Wales-Buenos Aires eee) ae totes. ¢16/50..0 0 13 6 the times were difficult. Years ye: ue and the depreciation of the ex- Coal: Best Welsh large S. Wales, per ton.. 4 0 0 Pt-6 ago the owner of an ordinary i Oils Per: tomratt Bort: Sadist ee te ates 12,15 0 4 10 0 change value of the German Wages:* cargo vessel could always rely m SE A. B.-seamen,’ per month... cite tee os 14 10 0 12:00 : nark, has produced a combina Firemen: Der momth . 230.0 ef sie ie cfelervityeie te 6 eles 15-00 12 10 0 upon securing an outward coal tion of circumstances of much Assistant stewards, per month. ..........- 13 15 0 it s.0 cargo and then half the work,. gravity for British shipping. British .companies openly admit they cannot carry goods at some of the low rates quoted by German lines. In some instances, as in the case of the South American rates, the freight ac- cepted by the German companies would, it is asserted, only cover the loading and discharging expenses of the British vessels. Not only have the German companies accepted far lower rates from continental ports than those con- sidered necessary by the British com- panies from the United Kingdom, but the German lines also have been will- ing to accept cargo from the United Kingdom for transshipment at Ger- man ports at much below the British level. It is known that shipbuilding in Germany is ‘being subsidized by the German government, and there is rea- son to believe the German shipping *Some deductions from the lowest wages shown above were proposed and were under discussion at the end of the year. detail voyage accounts for every char- ter proposed, and by their experience, they are able to take immediate advan- tage of any sudden demand which may spring up in the freight markets. The judgment of some of these owners was illustrated during the period of high freights. They sold their vessels at top prices and retired from _ busi- ness, leaving a void that cannot well be filled. For the sake of British shipping it was unfortunate that some of these ownerships should have retired from business, but, apart from the tempta- tion of high prices for’ their vessels, there were cases in which the older heads of the firms were approaching the age at which retirement would have been normal and men who would or nearly half, had been done. in recent years there has been no such easy opportunity of se- a freight for the outward For months in the early part of the year, when work at the collieries was. stopped, there were no outward cargoes at all, although a good deal of tonnage was given employ- ment in the transport of American coal to Europe. In the closing months of the year there has been considerable re- vival of the coal export trade. It would have been more satisfactory if, owing to labor restrictions, serious congestion at the coaling ports had not set in, fre- quently involving long delays to shipping. One of the most satisfactory fea- tures for the British cargo steamship owner was a demand for tonnage to load grain at Canadian ports as well as from the United States. This de- curing "voyage.