FALL IN STERLING

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21413, 4 March 1935, Page 11

FALL IN STERLING

♦ STOCK MARKETS REMAIN CALM GOLD REACHES NEW HIGH LEVEL (BRITISH OFFICIAL WIRELESS.) RUGBY, March 1. Newspapers attribute the present high value of gold to an exceptional demand on the Continent and point out that, despite the fall in the pound, Great Britain has been free from the consequences attending currency depreciation elsewhere. The cost of living, instead of rising as in countries pursuing an inflationary policy is, in fact, today lower than it was in 1931. Among the reasons for this are the balancing of the Budget and the establishment of a better trade balance.

Gold, as was expected, reached a new high level of £7 5s Id. In a leading article, on the national accounts, with special reference to the estimates issued yesterday, ''The Times" says the revenue returns to date show that it should not be difficult to end the present year with a modest surplus. The fall in the value of sterling in terms of Continental gold currencies, attributed in part to nervous selling by foreigners, continued to-day, but the position is viewed with equanimity in the city. This is reflected in the stock markets which maintain a cheerful appearance, and to-day, apart from the fresh stimulus which was given to the demand for gold shares following the advance in the price of gold, a feature of the markets was the good buying of home industrials, while gilt-edged securities were quoted at satisfactory prices. Like other newspapers, the "Evening Standard" approved the attitude of the authorities, who, it says, have preferred to let the present movement work itself out rather than check it by the operations of the exchange equalisation account. The "Evening Standard" adds that in Great Britain there is neither nervousness nor cause for nervousness in the situation. The stock markets are in a healthy condition, British trade returns are promising, industrial production is flourishing, the internal price level is steady, and the internal value of the pound remains high.