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European Shipping Improved in Tone Number of Cargo Liners Commissioned or Preparing for Further Service —Increases in Scrap Prices—Plans for Reconstituting Kylsant Group that have appeared in MARINE Review have been depressing in the extreme, but now at last there are distinct signs of improvement in the shipping world. These signs are not yet supported by figures, for freights and business are still ex- tremely depressed, but they contain evidence too strong to be disregard- ed. The principal indication is in the number of cargo liners which have either been recently commissioned or are now preparing for further ser- vice, for by the nature and economy of their business they are naturally the last to lay up and the last to re- commission. Many of the biggest and most successful of the British owners of cargo liners are now mak- ing preparations for considerably in- creased business, and if they cannot see the signs nobody can. Another good sign is the fact that when the Port of London Authority offered two million pounds’ worth of five per cent stock in lieu of the ex- isting seven per cent it was over-sub- seribed over twenty-five times within half an hour. This is a distinct step in the right direction, but of course this stock is in a particular category and it will probably be a very consid- erable time before the full effect of the restoration of investors’ confi- dence is felt in the shipping industry. - Before that time comes it will prob- ably be necessary to rationalize the remaining companies which were formed on an absolutely false founda- tion during the war boom, many of which are kept alive only by the action of the mortgagees, principally the banks. Another comforting item for the passenger shipowner is the enormous business which is being done in yachting cruises this year. With so little genuine passenger business of- fered, the companies have gone in for yachting cruises as they never have before, and have found wonderful support among the British holiday makers who have been accustomed to continental tours. With regard to yachting cruises the P & O Co. is trying a particu- larly interesting experiment, for they are confining their first class pro- gram to electric ships only. The STRATHNAVER, STRATHAIRD and_ VI- CEROY OF INDIA, with their turbo- electric machinery, ought to provide Te last few quarterly reviews 14 By Frank C. Bowen a very economical proposition at cruising speeds. It will be very in- teresting to compare their costs with those of the Canadian Pacific Em- PRESS OF BRITAIN, whose four geared turbines are carefully arranged to give economical power at the speed required for her elaborate cruises. Scrap Prices Have Gone Up Another thing in favor of the ship- owners is the fact that scrap prices have gone up to 20 shillings per gross ton’ for good ships and has stayed there, compared with ten shillings which was paid for quite a number of fine vessels only a short time ago. The position of the steel industry un- der the British tariff is still uncer- tain, but the price remains up. The only trouble is that many of the principal scrappers are now over- stocked with ships to be broken up as opportunity occurs; the famous Cunard CARMANIA was sold for twen- ty shillings a ton with delayed deliv- ery after many fittings had been re- moved, but until the scrappers can see their way to start work on her, she is costing £100 per week to keep in Tilbury docks, and there are no safe anchorages vacant where she could be put at a more reasonable price. Against these improved British prices is the unfortunate fact that the Japanese market has dried up almost completely, although it was very val- uable while it lasted, for 35 shillings per gross ton was a price worth try- ing for, even if it included the cost of delivering the ship to Japan. There is also, perhaps, great hope in the fact that the scheme for recon- stituting the Kylsant group has been accepted by an enormous majority of the shareholders and creditors con- cerned. That is not all that is neces- sary in such a case, and there are many legal formalities that have to be gone through which may wreck the scheme, but at the present time there seems to be every hope. One of the roots of the scheme is to divide the principal interest of the group into two big companies, one to look after the South American business and the other to look after the West African, cutting out the duplication which has hitherto run up the costs very considerably. Sir Frederick Lewis, the head of the Furness Withy group, has been persuaded to take MARINE REvVIEw—May, 1932 charge of the South American busi- ness, and Mr. Richard Holt of the Blue Funnel line will tackle the West African. If anybody can unravel the tangled affairs of the group it is these two men, who are undoubtedly the most conspicuous in British ship- ping business, but they have to face huge problems. Naturally enough, the British ship- ping industry and everything con- nected with it is now greatly inter- ested in the possible effects of the new British tariff, which are yet to be seen. It has to be admitted that it has been followed by a big slump in imports, but whether this is due to the ten per cent tariffs or to the rush to get goods into the country before the duties came into force, resulting in Britain being overstocked in prac- tically every commodity, remains to be seen. It is generally anticipated that the tendency will be to recover, with probably a very considerable in- crease in exports. Allied to the tariff question is the question of free ports in Britain, a subject on which opinion is very sharply divided. Many, including some prominent members of the cabi- net, consider that the present cus- toms organization with its bonded warehouses is quite sufficient to deal with the entrepot trade of the coun- try, which everybody agrees must be protected as far as possible. Others, on the other hand, and they include ‘such practical men as Mr. Walter Runciman, president of the board of trade, consider that these are not suf- ficiently convenient or spacious for big business, and that free ports will prove a necessity. Pending a decis- ion on the point, preparations are be- ing made to put forward suitable sites in London, Birkenhead and oth- er ports. Another question allied to the tariff is whether it will not make smuggling so worth while that the cost of protecting the revenue will wipe out the additional receipts. The Cunard company’s annual re- port, with a net loss of half a mil- lion sterling, was roughly what was expected on account of the interim report made in December, but the fact that they have over £1,300,000 in cash came as a surprise and caused many people to modify their ideas as to the position of the company. There seems to be every ‘hope that it will oe