NOT DISMAYED

Chronicle (Levin), 14 July 1947, Page 5

NOT DISMAYED

Received Sunday, 9.10 p.m. LONDON, July 13. Treasury officials are not dismayed by the approaeh of July 15 when steriing earned from- current transactions with Britain must be eonvertible into dollars, says Reuter's political correspondent. Although in nmny quarters a financial ealamity is predieted, the Treasury points to the convertibility agreements concluded since Januarv with Portugal, Holland, Belgium, Brazil, - Argentina, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Spain, Finland and Norway. The officials are hopeful that the drain on British dollar credit after July 15 may even lessen because these eountries all agreed to accept payments in steriing from each other as wTell as - from Britain and the Commonwealth of Nations, Britain is at present negotiating more agreements with India, France, i Sweden, Iraq, Uruguay and Switzerland. In the case of Egypt an agree ment has been made limiting the amount of steriing Egypt can spend in dollars or steriing from the balanees accrued during the war and because Egypt, eurrently, has an adverse trade balance with the* steriing eountries, it is not expected current transaetions ■ will" give' her more steriing to spend in the dollar areas. A similar situation will almost eertainfy apply to India. Treasury officials point out that steriing earned by United States, all the Central Ameriean -eountries, Venezuela and Colombia, has been convertible since before January when Treasury began the proeess, trying to lessen the impact of July 15.