New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-09-17
PRICES IN 1892 AND 1898.

In discussing foreign trade many persons are
prone to forget the change in prices during re-
cent wears and to trea. the change In volume or
imports or exports as entirely Il result OF In
crease or decrease in The quantities taken. But
the facts are widely different The sinking
prices within the last three years are response
BILE for much the greater part Of the apparent
decline In the volume OF imports and nm adj
vance in prices of some American products ne
counts for n considerable proportion Of the In
crease in American exports. For the purpose OF
testing the effect Of declining prices upon the
volume Of import trade, the average prices or
goods imported during the last fiscal year have
been ascerained and applied 10 the quantity
officially given Of imports In the fiscal year
1892 The result is curiously significant. Where
as the decline in the prices Of oil commodities IN
the United States, reckoning each according &c
its proportionate importance in domestic con-
SUMPTION has been only i3.1 per cent from 1892
TO 1895 comparing the quotations for the two
years the decline In tho prices Of the most i'm
portant commodities imported was much larger
no less than 234 per cent.
This was in part because the value OF coffee
imported from Brazil was mistakenly expressed
I'm deprecated silver currency In the reports for
1892 and il has never been possible since to de-
termine how great was the resulting error.
Coffee was then reported worth over 20
cents, and at ~ cents. the average for the last
fiscal year, the quantity actually imported In
1892 which was then called worth Sl2S,O4 | 800,
would have been worth only S4S.Ol5,SSi, or
about SSOO00,O00 less. Not much light Is cast
by comparison Of British imports, which
evidently Of qualities different from those
brought into this country. The average Of
British imports of coffee from Brazil In the
year 1899 only 17.3 cents. but during last
year it was II cents, about % per cent higher
than the value Of the coffee imported thence
into this country. One other item which great
~ affects the aggregate cost Is sugar, Of which
| the imports in 1892, II At the average prico OF
last year. would have been worth S21 ,0OO.0 900
less than the value officially reported for 1899.
Thus difference is found Of over 500, 900
in only two items. certainly in large measure
due 10 the erroneous report Of values in 1892.
But in all the other important items the differ
enco in cost. II The actual imports in 1892 were
rcckoned at the average price during tho last
year would be only $500 000 or about per
cent 1t does not often happen that great
difference in value of imports can be traced 10
only two items.
Some OF the changes in the prices OF commod-
tiles are owing TO circumstances readily per-
cevcd. Thus an advance OF about onc-half In
the cost Of tobacco Is evidently due to the pres
cnt condition OF Cuba. and decline OF So. i00,-
600 In tinplates. or moro than onc-quarter, Is
due to the great development Of manufacture in
this country and the effort OF foreign producers
| to retain a part OF the market by depressing
prices Wool is hardly per cent lower than in
1892. the foreign cost only being considered, as
tho Australian supply has been smaller and
dearer during the last than In other recent
years. A decrease Of 80 per cent In tho cost OF
tin reflects q change of worldwide influence rs
to this product. for twenty years ago it was
selling at about its present price, but rose so
that ten years ago the average cost Of imports
! Der pound was 276 cents. against 1871 last year.