Calendar Year.-During the calendar year ended December 31st, 1896, the total imports, exports and re-exports of merchandise at all ports of the United States were as follows: This shows an increase of $60,898,010 for the calendar year 1896. The total imports, exports and re-exports of merchandise at the Port of New-York for the calendar year 1896 were, compared with the previous year, as follows: Fiscal Year.-The balance of the trade between the United States and foreign countries for the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1896, as exhibited by the statistics of the Treasury Department, was as follows: Exports of domestic and foreign merchandise, $882,606,938 Imports of foreign merchandise, 779,724,674 In favor of the United States, 1896, . . $102,882,264 75,568,200 Calendar Year.-The balance of trade between the United States and foreign countries, for the calendar year ended December 31st, 1896, was as follows: Fiscal Year.-The imports of gold and silver coin and gold and silver bullion into the United States during the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1896, amounted to $33,525,065 gold, and $28,777,186 silver; total, $62,302,251. The exports and re-exports for the same period were, gold coin and bullion, $112, 409,947; silver coin and bullion, $60,541,670; total, $172,951,617; an excess of exports over imports of $110,649,366. For the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1895, the imports and exports of gold and silver coin and bullion were as follows: Imports, $56,595,939; exports, $113,763,767; excess of exports over imports, $57,167,828. Calendar Year.-The imports of gold and silver coin and gold and silver bullion for the calendar year ended December 31st, 1896, were, gold, $102,761,282; silver, $12,504,577; total, $115,265,859. The exports and re-exports of gold and silver coin and gold and silver bullion for the same period were, gold, $56,742,844; silver, $63,029,336; total, $119,772,180; excess of exports over imports of $4,506,321. an For the calendar year ended December 31st, 1895, the imports and exports of gold and silver coin and gold and silver bullion were as follows: Imports, $43,824,743; exports, $158,438,176; excess of exports, $114,613,433. STOCK OF COIN IN THE UNITED STATES. On the 1st day of July, 1896, the stock of gold and silver coin in the United States, as estimated by the Director of the Mint, was as follows: The silver coin consisted of $430,790,041 in dollars, and $75,971,507 in subsidiary coin. On the same day the total metallic stock, including coin and bullion, was as follows: Gold, Silver, Total, $599,597,964 628,728,071 . $1,228,326,035 As compared with the gold and silver stock on the 1st day of July, 1895, this showed a decrease in gold of $36,631,861, and an increase in silver of $2,873,122, a total net decrease of $33,758,739. Clearing House Transactions.-The exchanges at the New-York Clearing House for the calendar year 1896 reflect the stagnation in trade for that period, being about one thousand millions less than in 1895, or $28,870,775,056.20. The cash balances were $1,792,686,480.97, or 6.2 per cent. of the exchanges. The exchanges reported by all Clearing Houses in the country, including the New-York, amount to over fifty-one thousand millions, or about two thousand millions less than 1895. CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS VOLUME. The Secretary returns his thanks to the Hon. WORTHINGTON C. FORD, Chief of the Bureau of Statistics at Washington, for advance statements of Imports, Exports and Re-Exports of the United States for the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1896; to CHARLES MCK. LEOSER'S SONS, for a Report on the Wine and Spirit Trade; to ISAAC H. BAILEY, for Reports on the Leather, Hide, and Boot and Shoe Trades; to MCKESSON & ROBBINS, for a Report on the Drug Trade; to ABRAHAM MILLS, for a Report on the Wool Trade; to H. C. FOLGER, Jr., for a Report on the Petroleum Trade; to WILLIAM B. DANA & Co., for a Report on the Cotton Crop; and to the Editor of the Whalemen's Shipping List of New-Bedford, for a Report on the Whale Fishery. PROCEEDINGS OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, FROM MAY, 1896, TO MAY, 1897. 128th Annual Meeting, Thursday, May 7, 1896. THE One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Annual Meeting of the Chamber of Commerce was held this day, at half past twelve o'clock, P. M., at the rooms of the Chamber, on Nassau-Street, between Cedar and Liberty streets. PRESENT. ALEXANDER E. ORR, President. J. EDWARD SIMMONS, JOHN CROSBY BROWN, WILLIAM H. WEBB, Vice-Presidents. SOLON HUMPHREYS, Treasurer. GEORGE WILSON, Secretary. And two hundred and twenty-three members. On the suggestion of the President the reading of the minutes of the last regular meeting of the Chamber, held April 2d, was dispensed with. REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES. HENRY HENTZ, Chairman of the Executive Committee, reported the following resolution, which was unanimously adopted: Resolved, That the following named Special Committees be and they are hereby continued, and the President authorized to make such changes in their membership as may be necessary : |