1907.] Imports of Grain in the Cereal Year. 



349 



may be taken as equivalent to 4,284,000 qrs. and 4,677,000 qrs. 

 respectively of wheat grain, making with the imports and 

 the home production a total available for consumption of 

 33,966,000 qrs. of wheat in 1906-7 and 34,283,000 qrs. in 1905-6. 

 Similar calculations for the two preceding years show that the 

 aggregate quantity available, exclusive of stocks carried over, 

 was 34,063,000 qrs. in 1903-4 and 32,796,000 qrs. in 1904-5, the 

 lower figure of the latter year being largely accounted for 

 by the inferior harvest of the United Kingdom in 1904. On 

 the whole it will be seen that the amount available for consump- 

 tion during the past four years has shown no very great variation. 



With regard to the countries contributing to the supply, 

 the receipts from each of the principal sources are given in the. 

 following table : — 



Country of Export. 



Thousands of Cwts. 



1906-7. 



1905-6. 



1904-5. 



1903-4. 



India 



14,613 



n,743 



29,083 



23,H4 



Russia ... 



12,843 



i8,377 



28,823 



J9,33i 



Argentina 



22,179 



22,^90 



24,085 



17,490 



United States ... 



20,319 



17 917 



4,558 



12,897 



Canada ... 



11,085 



11,177 



3,547 



8,355 



Australia 



7,769 



7,488 



12,758 



6,322 



The Argentine Republic occupied for the second time the 

 position of principal exporter to this country and furnished 

 22,179,000 cwts. compared with 22,890,000 cwts. in 1905-6 

 and 24,085,000 cwts. in 1904-5. The second place was taken 

 by the United States, which showed a further recovery from 

 the very low figures reported in 1904-5. The effects of 

 the poor Russian harvest are shown by the comparatively 

 small receipts from that country, while those from India, 

 though greater than in 1905-6, were also inferior to 

 the two preceding years. The contributions from Canada 

 approached very closely to the maximum figure yet recorded., 

 while those from Australia were good though not exceptional. 



The average price of imported wheat was £1 10s. $d. per qr, 

 in 1906-7, compared with £1 10s. g\d. in 1905-6, the total value 

 of the. wheat imported in the past year being £33,648,000 as 

 compared with £33,952,000 in the preceding periods 



