The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

WE Gee Awe = Latte etak. ck ee BRR SH 0 8 a ROE BK SER Bat oe ter eA? SIZISiets aNS ot Es Kk i NApe 4 wy, rs ia * yas MX wRAN Pe ar i Nk Ser heat, Fae 4 at ote BS ag aN pee edit: Bing Shipping and Shipbuilding Show Marked Revival In British Isles NCOURAGING statements con- EK, cerning the British shipping and shipbuilding industries were made at recent company meetings. Lord Kylsant, one of the leading shipowners — and shipbuilders of Great Britain, said that he is hopeful that British trade and commerce are now approaching an era of better and more settled times. Already in April, at the an- nual meeting of Harland & Wolff, Ltd., Lord Kylsant stated that of the twenty-six berths in the company’s shipyards at Belfast, Glasgow and Greenock, twenty-four were occupied. More recently, at the meeting of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Co., the same speaker said: “I am personally a believer in the principle of trade eycles, which throughout my business life have usually been of seven to ten years’ duration. It is now just over seven years since the slump began, and I incline to the view that the upward movement, although as yet not very pronounced, has begun.” A certain restrained optimism can reasonably be expected on the part 24 already By Vincent Delport European Manager Marine Review of those responsible for the manage- ment of British shipping. The lead- ing concerns have weathered last year’s storm and today freights are higher than they were a year ago and running costs are somewhat lower. Business has revived, perhaps more than was expected. The overseas de- mand for British coal, following the shortage of supplies due to last year’s stoppage, is considerable. Grain load- ings from Canada and Argentina to Kuropean and other foreign ports have been heavy. Passenger traffic is ex- panding. These factors are inspiring confidence, and following the improve- ment of the shipping conditions, own- ers have given orders for new ships. Thus the shipbuilding industry also is benefiting from the situation, although much of the work is being done at little or no profit. However, in re- cent months the amount of laid-up tonnage has been steadily decreasing and recent experience has shown that a large amount of unemployed ships MARINE REVIEW—August, 1927 are obsolete, so that more orders can be expected in the future, when work- ing conditions in the yards will, it is hoped, be more economical. There is better employment on the Clyde, which is one of the prominent shipbuilding districts in Great Britain. At the beginning of this year there were 75,295 workers receiving unem- ployment benefit; at the end of May the number was 47,500. During the five months ending May 31 this year, 72 vessels of 104,700 tons were launched in the district, which figures compare with 68 vessels of 140,030 tons in the corresponding period of last year and 92 vessels of 259,500 tons in the first five months of 1925. This year’s figures are due to the fact that the industry had to recover from last year’s labor troubles, but the amount of work now on hand is much larger than a year ago. Important contracts recently have been obtained by British shipyards. On the Clyde there was great satis- faction at the award of a foreign order for a cargo steamer from Er- hardt and Dekkers of Rotterdam. The