MANILA HEMP 163 



The chief importing countries are the United 

 States and the United Kingdom. The quantities 

 and values of the exports to the United Kingdom 

 during 1909-1915 were as follows : 



IMPORTS INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM * 



Year. Quantity. Value. 



Tons. 



1909 ^. . . 58,583 



1910 . . . 64,106 1,520,199 



1911 75,449 1,647,542 



1912 . . . 83,313 1,990,481 



1913 . . 64,579 2,000,450 

 I9H 54,206 1,396,593 

 1915 . . . 57,783 1,760,471 



The great demand for Manila hemp has led the 

 growers to increase the production at the expense of 

 quality with the result that comparatively small 

 quantities of the better grades are now produced, 

 the great bulk of the exports consisting of the poorer 

 grades. In consequence of this large output of the 

 inferior qualities, prices fell very considerably after 

 1907. The following are the London market quota- 

 tions in January of each of the years 1906-1916 : 



Date. Fair Current f Good Current. 



Per ton. Per ton. 

 ' >. 



1906 . . . 40 o 48 5 



1907 . . . 42 o 53 o 



1908 . . . 29 o 38 10 



1909 . 23 10 33 15 



1910 . . . 26 5 32 15 



1911 . . 19 o 34 10 



1912 . . . 21 10 34 10 



1913 . . . 34 o 69 o 

 I9H 27 15 57 o 



1915 . . . 28 10 43 10 



1916 . . . 56 10 63 10 



* These figures include small quantities of "Maguey" fibre (see 

 p. 167). 



f This grade was about equal or slightly superior to the " fair " 

 quality of the new grading system. 



