THE PRICE OF WHEAT 177 
Zealand prices to remain relatively high owing to scarcity 
of local supplies over a period of two or three years. 
In the following table the prices of English and New 
Zealand wheat per bushel, in years of low production 
in New Zealand, are compared. 
TABLE XXV. 
AVERAGE ANNUAL PRICES OF ENGLISH AND 
NEW ZEALAND WHEAT. 
English New Zealand 
Year. Prices, Prices. 
s. d. s. d. 
1886 Ses a 3 10 3 9 
1895 ‘ pe 210 211 
1897 3.9 4 3 
1898 4 3 4 3 
1902 3 6 3 6 
1907 3.7 3 9 
1908 3 10 48 
1913 310 3 10 
1914 49 5 9 
On the other hand, in times of plenty in our local 
supply, English prices have an appreciable influence on 
the level of prices in New Zealand. An extremely prolific 
yield, such as there was in 1899 when some 13,000,000 
bushels were produced, cannot depress prices below a 
certain point, irrespective of foreign conditions. There 
is a limit below which, under normal conditions, price 
cannot fall. This limit is set by the cost of shipping 
wheat to the foreign market—England, so far as we are 
concerned. 
The difference between the English price and the 
New Zealand price cannot exceed this amount over long 
periods. Obviously, if price in New Zealand falls below 
this limit then wheat will be exported to England. 
Thus, in 1899 the New Zealand price was 2s. 62d. per 
bushel and the English price was 3s. 24d. per bushel, a 
difference of 72d. The cost of sending a bushel of wheat 
to London is about 8d., and if we compare prices in 
