During the year 1883, which is the latest for which statistics were available, the import and export trade of Tonga reached the total value of £200,000. It is gratifying to note that about one-half of this trade was transacted with England and her colonies, and more cheering still to know that the English and colonial trade (the latter particularly) is rapidly increasing. Appended table will show clearly the volume of Tongan trade with different countries :—

Imports and Exports in 1883.

From and to.	Imports.	Exports.	Total.
England and Colonies	£60,000 Goods	£25,000 Goods	£96,000
England and Colonies	1,000 Coin	10,000 Coin
Germany	10,000 Goods	60,000 Goods	84,000
Germany	14,000 Coin
America	15,000 Goods	None	15,000
Elsewhere	5,000 Goods	None	5,000
Totals	£105,000	£95,00O	£200,000

Among the imports the articles which bulk most largely are cotton goods, breadstuff's, hardware, Manchester goods, timber, tinned page 14 fruits and meats. Copra is the staple article of export, but there is also a growing export of coffee, cotton, fungus, and fruits. No beche-de-mer is collected here, nor is there any pearl-shell to be found. Clam-pearls are collected by the natives, but they have no commercial value. The value of the different articles of export is approximately as under :—

Copra	£90,000
Wool	1,800
Coffee	1,500
Fruits	1,000
Cotton	500
Fungus	200
Total	£95,000

Though the exact volume could not be ascertained, on account of the iaccute;mperfect statistics kept by the Tonga authoriaccute;ties, iaccute;t iaccute;s clear that a considerable portion of the import trade is done with New Zealand, while not a little of the export trade also flows through this colony. The following shipping statistics will, I think, make this apparent :—

Shipping Statistics, 1883, for Port of Nukualofa and Others in Tonga Group.

Nationality.	No. of vessels.	Tonnage.	Remarks.
English	28	3,312	Of the 28 English vessels 15 were from New Zealand, the others being from Sydney and Fiji. The large German tonnage is accounted for by the fact that the ships are generally large vessels, chartered for the round trip, and partially loading at San Francisco, Sydney, or Brisbane.
German	17	4,161
American	1	160
Norwegian	1	560
Total	47	8,193

During the past five years the tonnage of vessels from New Zealand has increased in far greater ratio than that of any other country, but the English trade in general is expanding. It was expected that the returns for 1884 would show a slight advance on those given above, while in the same year the anticipation is that the English export trade from Tonga will for the first time equal the German. The quantities of goods exported in 1883 were :—

Corpa	9,000 tons
Oranges	400,000
Coffee	40 tons
Wool	120 bales
Fungus	1 ton