COTTON IN EGYPT AND THE SUDAN. 105 



and sometimes the spinners make up special types, suitable for their 

 own requirements, which the exporters must match. Some of the 

 price lists show as many as 100 different classes, amongst these as 

 many as 30 different kinds of Ann. The Egyptian cotton business is, 

 contrary to the American ' ' bulk ' ' cotton trade (in which only 

 Sea Island takes up a special division), quite a specialised trade, 

 which must conform to the most varied requirements, and for this 

 reason also it is difficult to get cotton ready for export in the interior. 



Egyptian cotton is not sold according to length of staple, as is 

 the case with American cotton, but most of the Egyptian cotton is 

 sold with a view to lustre, fineness, colour, strength, and lack of dead 

 cotton. 



The basis of quotation on which future business is transacted is 

 that of "fully good fair brown Mit Ann." Cotton from Upper 

 Egypt is somewhat lower in price, Abbassi, Nubari, Joanovitch, and 

 Sakellaridis are about 1 to 4 dollars per kantar higher. 



The average prices of Egyptian cotton are, on account of the 

 longer length of fibre, the fineness, and the lustrous colour, higher 

 than those of American Upland, but, nevertheless, the fluctuations 

 of the Liverpool market for American cotton influence to a certain 

 extent the basis of quotations for Egyptian cotton in Alexandria; 

 when the price of Egyptian cotton becomes too high, it is frequently, 

 as far as possible, substituted by American kinds, and thus the 

 price of American cotton acts as a regulator. 



The quotations in Alexandria are for " spot " cotton, i.e., cotton 

 to be obtained at once, or for " future deliveries " within 12 months ; 

 the latter refer frequently only to difference transactions. 



In 1884 the Societe Egyptienne de la Bourse Commerciale de 

 Minet-el-Bassal was established with a capital of ^35,000. It 

 cannot be called an exchange proper, but is really a building that has 

 been erected by a company for the purpose of having in one place a 

 number of small and large offices let to parties interested in 

 cotton, such as exporters, dealers, &c. There are no special rules for 

 the so-called commercial exchange of Minet-el-Bassal, or onion har- 

 bour, which is a quarter in the south-west part of Alexandria, where 

 are also situated the cotton stores(Shoonas)of the dealers and bankers,, 

 and the presses. In Minet-el-Bassal are the goods station of the State 

 railways, the landing stage for disembarking the produce coming 

 from the interior on the Mahmoodije Canal, and the quays where 

 the steamers take cargo for export. Thus the entire handling of 

 cotton is carried on here. On the basis of samples, cotton is sold 

 at Minet-el-Bassal as well as cotton seed, grains, and produce, 

 and from 11-30 a.m. to 1-30 p.m. one sees in the yard of the market 

 all kinds of people, wearing different coloured costumes, and speaking 

 all kinds of languages. Farmers, as well as brokers, submit to ex- 

 porters in their small offices samples of the cotton they have to sell. 

 These samples have frequently been valued beforehand by official 

 experts. If the cotton offered suits the exporter he will 

 order new samples to be taken from the cotton, and on the 

 basis of these the price is definitely fixed. After the closing 

 of the market the buyer has the bales which he has bought marked, 

 and then again further samples are taken. The seller then 

 draws at once for the approximate amount of the transaction on the 



