958
RUSSIA
—
1896
1897
Imports from
Exports to
Imports from
Exports to
United States . China .... Egypt .... Other countries
Total
65,671 14,543 13,599 53,804
1,606
18
3,790
74,144
47,678 13,771 24,092
46,832
2,707
1,008
5,816
81,499
540,267
667,412
508,516
704,222
Since 1869 the customs duties have been steadily increasing. In that year the duties levied on articles of food amounted to 31 per cent, of the declared value of imports over the European frontier ; in 1894, to 61 per cent. ; duties on goods used for the industries in 1869, 5 per cent. ; in 1894, 24 per cent, of declared value of imports ; on manufactured goods in 1869, 9 per cent. ; in 1894, 32 per cent, of declared value of imports.
The imports from Russia into the United Kingdom, and the exports of British home produce to Russia, according to the Board of Trade Returns, are shown in the subjoined table : —
—
1893
1894 1895
1896
1897
Imports from Russia
into U. K. . Exports to Russia
from U. K. .
£ 18,574,565
6,372,236
£ 1 £ 23,598,748 24,736,919
6,884,480 7,004,537
£ 22,667,443
7,185,185
£ 22,284,365
7,513,165
The chief article of import from Russia into the United Kingdom is grain mainly wheat, oats, and barley, as follows : —
—
1893
1894
1895 1896
1897
£ 5,439,052 1,425,765 1,485,083
Wheat Oats . Barley
£ 3,095,501 2,304,088 2,854,088
£ 4,284,862 2,967,999 3,508,840
£ £ 6,048,929 5,187,240 2,763,851 2,405,298 2.634,256 1,999,562
Other articles of import into Great Britain from Russia in the year 1897 were flax and tow, to the value of 1,998,482^. ; wood and timber, 5,013,796^. ; flax seed, 1,137,784Z. ; hemp and tow, 177,442Z. ; wool, 417,646Z. ; petro- leum, 526,994Z. ; butter, 970,264Z. ; sugar, 70,088Z. Minor articles of import into Great Britain are tallow and stearine, bristles, cordage and twine, oil-seed cake, and tar. The principal British exports to Russia in tlie year 1897 were iron, wrought and unwi'ought, of the value of 1,520,885Z. ; lead, 148,440Z. ; cotton stuffs and yarn, 392,288Z. ; woollens, with worsteds and yarn, 464,161Z. ; coal, 921,719Z. ; machinery, 1,766,517^. ; alkali, 68,312Z. ; fish (herring), 195,016Z.
The quantities of wheat imported from Russia into the United Kingdom in five years from both the northern and southern ports of the Empire, were as follows:— 1893, 10,063,614 cwts. ; 1894, 16,822,271 cwts. ; 1895, 23,017,035 cwts. ; 1896, 17,241,600 cwts. ; 1897, 15,049,900 cwts.
For the year 1897 the quantities of cereals exported from Russia to