INDEBTEDNESS FROM 1900 TO 1913 153
III. Capital Investments and Interest Payments.
After 1850 the practice of floating Australian loans in London
almost eliminated domestic loans. But the stoppage of the flow
of capital from Great Britain after 1893 and the increasing
surplus of domestic capital led, during the period after 1900, to
the placing of many redemption and other loans entirely within
Australia. This is, indeed, the outstanding financial feature of
Tape XXXII
Government Loans raised and Interest Payable Abroad 1
Year.
1901
1902
1903 .
1904 .
19056
1906
1907
1908
1909
1910 .
1911 .
1912 . :
1913
Loans
raised.
£m.
5-2
6-7
5-0
1-7
0-7
2-0 |
5-1
2-@
6-8
L 4
Total held
in London.
£m.
174-8
181-5
186-5
188-2
188-9
190-9
185-6
183-3
189-4
192-0
183-2
190-0
204-4.
Average rate
on debt
per cent.
3-68
3-64
3-78
3-62
3-63
3-63
3-60
3-60
3-58
3.57
3-57 |
3:67
9.60
Interest
payable
abroad.
£m.
6-433
6-608
6-775
6-805
6-847
6-911
6-687
6-591
8-771
6-855
8-544
6-775
7.951
the first decade of the Commonwealth ; and there is little doubt
that the rapid increase in domestic holdings of Australian govern-
ment securities has done much to increase confidence overseas
in these loans. Between 1900 and 1913 the portion of the public
debt raised in London increased from £174-8 millions to £204-4
millions, while the portion raised in Australia rose from £288 to
£90-1 millions. In other words the proportion of the public debt
raised at home rose from 14-1 to 30-5 per cent., in itself some
indication that the capital previously borrowed was largely
reproductive.
By comparison with Lehfeldt’s estimate of the return on
large colonial investments (Table XXXV) it will be seen that
Australia had borrowed very advantageously, despite the fact
that interest rates were relatively high until 1890. By 1900 the
1 Pinance Bulletins, Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics.
3710