Down the Hatch

The Anchor Line's S.S. Egidia steamed into New York harbor last week with her holds filled with 2,500,000 fifths of Scotch whiskey. It was the largest single shipment in seven years. Britain is planning to increase her Scotch production and exports to boost her dollar balances, and many other such shipments will soon follow. But this prospect brought no cheers from liquor retailers, many of whom are caught with supplies of high-priced Scotch in their cellars.

The prospects of plenty--and a buyers' strike--had already made Scotch prices drop from their $10 to $12 Christmas level to around $6. One New York City retailer last week advertised Ballantine's at $5.49, Haig & Haig 5-Star at $5.28. Gone altogether were the tie-in sales of rum and wine.

U.S. distillers were even less happy than retailers over the outlook. Their stocks are up to from 355,000,000 gallons in February to 432,000,000 in May, an alltime record, and nationwide sales have dropped 20 to 30% under last year's. The big distillers were already cutting back production. Yet they had managed to keep wholesale prices up, except on poor or little-known brands. With Scotch prices down, it looked as if the domestic whiskies were next. Distillers feared that a price war--of the proportions of 1936-38 and 1940-41--was dead ahead. Consumers hoped so.

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