海関統計とは近代の中国で作成された貿易統計である。1859年から1949年3月まで作成された。貿易統計は関税法と通商条約に基づいて税関が作成する業務統計である。そのため法律や制度の違いによって、多様な形態の貿易統計が存在する。少なくとも国際連合の国際標準ルールが浸透する1960年代より前の時代、国によって貿易統計はすべて違っていたと言っても過言ではない。海関統計も多分にもれず当時の中国特有の貿易制度に基づいて作成された。そのため統計の特徴を理解するためには、その背後にある制度についての説明を必要とする。
The China Maritime Customs Statistics refers to trade statistics compiled in modern China from 1859 to March 1949. Trade statistics are compiled by the customs authorities based on customs law and trade agreements. As a result, trade statistics come in a variety of forms due to differences in laws and regulatory institutions. It is not an overstatement that before the 1960s when the United Nations’ international standards spread, each country had its own unique trade statistics. The China Maritime Customs Statistics were no exception: they were compiled based on the trade system, which was specific to China during that period. Consequently, in order to understand the features of the Statistics, understanding the institution behind them is necessary.
今日、貿易統計が外国貿易統計と同義であるのは、国内法である関税法によって関税ラインが国境とされているからにすぎない。税関が誰に何を何処で課税するかは時代や国によって異なる。中国の場合アヘン戦争以降、西洋諸国と通商条約を結んだ。通商条約は中国の数ある海上貿易のうち西洋人だけに適用される特例ルールであった。さらに太平天国の乱のどさくさの中で、このルールが適用される貿易の管理は西洋人が組織する税関で行われることになった。このように、近代中国の貿易制度の最大の特徴は、西洋人と非西洋人の貿易に分けた二元的な制度により運用されていた点にある。西洋人の税関は当初は「洋関」（西洋人の税関）と呼ばれていたが、その組織が強大になるにつれて中国の税関そのものと目されるようになり、「中国海関」と呼ばれるようになった。
The only reason trade statistics of today are synonymous with foreign trade statistics are the domestically legislated customs laws that stipulate that the customs lines are the country’s borders. Who is taxed where and on what by the customs authorities differs with time and country. In the case of China, it concluded trade agreements with Western countries after the Opium War. These trade agreements were special rules applicable only to the Westerners, and not to the rest of the many sea trading partners of China and Chinese traders. Furthermore, in the chaotic situation following the Taiping Rebellion, trade under these special rules came to be managed by customs authorities regulated by the Westerners. The most prominent point of the modern Chinese trade system is that there were two separate systems: one for Westerners and another for non-Westerners. Westerners’ customs was originally called “Westerners’ customs” (Yang Guan; 洋関); however, as it became more and more prevalent, it came to be seen as the customs of China, and came to be referred to as “China Maritime Customs.”(Hai guan;海関)
海関統計はこの中国海関が作成した統計である。中国海関は通商条約が定める範囲内で通関業務を執行したにすぎないため、その適用範囲を超える交易はたとえ国際貿易であっても統計に記録されることはなかった。具体的には海関が海の税関を意味するように、陸上貿易についてはほぼ記録されていない。海上貿易については課税の対象は西洋籍の船に限られていたが、1866年からは国籍ではなく西洋式船舶全般を対象とするようになった。これを裏返すとジャンクに代表される中国在来船舶は記録の対象外であった。総じて、海関統計の数値は西洋式船舶が条約港で積み下ろしをした貨物記録の集計であった。
The China Maritime Customs Statistics were compiled by China Maritime Customs authorities. Since China Maritime Customs engaged with the customs business within the scope stipulated by the trade agreements, trade beyond the specified scope was never recorded in the statistics even if it was international trade. More concretely, “customs” in this context mainly refers to sea trade and hardly any records of land trade were kept. As for sea trade, while only Western-registered ships were taxed by the customs originally, from 1866, Western-style ships became the subject of taxation whereas conventional Chinese ships including junks were outside the remit of statistics. All in all, data in the China Maritime Customs Statistics were about cargo, which was loaded and unloaded in treaty ports by Western-style ships.
このような限界が海関統計にはあるけれども、こと西洋式船舶の貿易については極めて詳細な統計を作成した。特筆すべきは、外国貿易だけではなく国内貿易についても記録を残した点である。つまり海関統計は、経済資料としては中国内外の遠隔地間交易についての貴重かつ完全に近い記録と見ることもできる。特に1866年から1899年までは外国品と中国品に分けた国内外の交易ネットワークを30以上の条約港別の統計から描くことができる。
While the China Maritime Customs Statistics come with such limitations, they represent very detailed statistics of trade by Western-style ships. Particularly noteworthy is that they include data on domestic trade as well as foreign trade. In other words, as economic materials, the China Maritime Customs Statistics can be seen as almost perfect records of long distance trade in and outside China. In particular, between 1866 and 1899, outlines of separate trade networks of foreign goods and Chinese goods in and outside China can be drawn based on statistics from more than thirty treaty ports.
海関統計が通商条約に基づく貿易を詳細に記録できたのは、イギリス人を中心とする西洋人の税関職員の手によって、西洋の統計技術が直接導入されたからである。ジャンク貿易を管理した清朝や北京政府時代の民国政府は、税収報告を作成しても貿易統計を作成しなかった。つまり、貿易統計は西洋簿記を基礎とする先端的な知識と技術であって、その導入に当たっては専門家の養成を含む意識的な改革の努力が必要であった。このことは日本やタイでも開港から久しく海関統計に匹敵する貿易統計を作成できなかったことからも分かる。また、中国海関は最盛期で6000人以上の職員を擁する近代中国のなかでも最大規模の近代組織であった。その一方で、通商条約が足かせとなり、海関統計は長らく国民経済としての貿易を記録することができなかった。無論、西洋人職員たちはこの問題を強く意識し、絶えず海関統計をより中国の貿易統計に近づける努力を続けた。例えば、ジャンク貿易が中国の商品流通で大きな役割と規模を持つことから、それを海関統計に組み入れるための条約改訂が数度試みられている。
The reason why the China Maritime Customs Statistics turned out to be a detailed record of trade based on the trade agreements is that Western statistical techniques were directly introduced by the Western customs officers, many of whom were British. Neither the Qing government nor the Peking government of the Republic of China that managed junk trade compiled trade statistics though they produced tax revenue reports. In other words, trade statistics represented cutting-edge knowledge and skills based on Western book-keeping and conscious efforts for a reform including educating specialists were necessary to introduce them. This can be seen in the fact that neither Japan nor Thailand could produce as good trade statistics as the China Maritime Customs Statistics for a long time after opening their ports for trade. The China Maritime Customs, with more than 6,000 staff members at its peak, was one of the biggest modern organizations in modern China. On the other hand, because of restrictions imposed by the trade agreements, the China Maritime Customs Statistics could not record trade as a national economy for a long time. Of course, Western staff members were very aware of this problem and they made continuous efforts to approximate the China Maritime Customs Statistics to Chinese trade statistics. For example, since junk trade played an important role and was on a large scale, several attempts were made to amend the treaties so as to incorporate junk trade figures in the China Maritime Customs Statistics.
海関統計が国民経済の外国貿易統計になったのは、1930年に中国が関税自主権を回復することで、それまでの通商条約の「不平等条項」が廃止され、国定の関税法により税関が運営されてからである。このように海関統計が現代貿易統計になるためには、近代中国が国民国家として自主・独立を達成する必要があった。関税自主権回復後まもなく中国は日本と戦争状態になり国民経済統計しての基本要件を満たすことができなくなった。結局、中国で国民経済統計としての貿易統計が誕生するのは1949年の人民共和国成立以降である。
It was in 1930 when China recovered tariff autonomy by the abolition of the “unequal clause” in the trade agreements that led to the running of customs by the domestically legislated customs law that the China Maritime Customs Statistics became foreign trade statistics of a national economy. In order for the China Maritime Customs Statistics to become modern trade statistics, modern China had to achieve autonomy/independence as a nation-state. Soon after recovering its tariff autonomy, China was at war with Japan, which made it impossible for basic requirements in national economic statistics to be met. After all, the birth of trade statistics as national economic statistics in China wasn’t until after 1949 when the People’s Republic of China was established.