§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated figure for 1973 of pre-tax company sector trading profits—gross trading profits less stock appreciation and capital consumption—valued at 1963 prices.
§ Dr. Gilbert£2,136 million if revalued to 1963 prices on the basis of the General index of Retail Prices, and £2,118 million472W if revalued on the basis of the index of total home costs (derived from the national accounts).
§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated figures for 1973 of pre-tax company sector trading profits—gross trading profits less stock appreciation and capital consumption—as a proportion of capital employed, valued at replacement cost.
§ Dr. GilbertInformation on capital employed in the whole company sector is not comprehensive. The available information relates to industrial and commercial companies' assets, excluding current assets other than stocks and work in progress, and before deducting current liabilities. These assets broadly comprise fixed assets, including buildings; stocks and work in progress; and land; some of these, which cannot be distinguished, provide a return in the form of rent. Fixed assets are valued at estimated replacement cost after deducting capital consumption and land at approximate market values, but stocks and work in progress are included at book values. The estimates relate to 1972, the latest year for which information is available, but those for land are projected from information in respect of 1966. It is estimated that the gross trading profits, together with income as rent, of industrial and commercial companies, after deducting stock appreciation and capital consumption, were about 6 per cent. of capital employed as defined above. While the estimate is believed to be of the right order of magnitude, it would not be wise to attach significance to the precise figure.
§ Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated figure for pre-tax company sector trading profits—gross trading profits less stock appreciation and capital consumption—as a proportion of national income in 1973.
§ Dr. Gilbert6.7 per cent.
§ Mr. Norman Lamontasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what were the gross trading profits of companies in the United Kingdom after subtracting stock appreciation and expressed at constant prices in 1972 and 1973.
§ Dr. GilbertGross trading profits after deducting stock appreciation were £5,609 473W million in 1972. The corresponding figure for 1973 revalued to 1972 prices would be £5,857 million if revalued on the basis of the General Index of Retail Prices, and £5,873 million if revalued on the basis of the index of total home costs (derived from the national accounts).
§ Mr. Norman Lamontasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the national income was gross trading profits in 1964, 1966, 1970, 1972 and 1973.
§ Dr. GilbertThe information is given in the following table:
TRADING PROFITS OF COMPANIES AS A PERCENTAGE OF NATIONAL PRODUCT (a) (b) 1964 14.6 12.1 1966 12.9 10.0 1970 10.0 6.5 1972 10.4 6.8 1973 10.2 6.7 Column (a) shows gross profits (before deducting capital consumption and tax), excluding stock appreciation, as a percentage of gross national product.
Column (b) shows net profits (after deducting capital consumption but before tax), excluding stock appreciation, as a percentage of national income (net national product).
Stock appreciation is excluded from the figures of national product.