BRITISH EXPORTS RISING

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 33, 3 November 1919, Page 5

BRITISH EXPORTS RISING

50 PER CENT INCREASE SINCE THE ARMISTICE REASSURING OUTLOOK Tim outstanding feature of tho Trade lietuvns for August was -liie marked jutproveinenl in our exports (writes "D.C.M/' in the London "Observer . Taking our shipment* of Britisli &001U and of iniDOitt'ii „ r oods together, the ntf* urn advanced to .UK), 100,000. In spite ■of maintained imports, therefore, the adverse balance of trade fell to JiaS,7o(l,ooo. This i.s a figure formidable. enough, but it is nearlv .000,000,000 per annum less than .that mentioned by the Prune Minister in his speech on the eve ol the adjournment. . . The advance in British exports is, in nil the circumstances, not a little remarkable. The comparison between last month and the month after (he cqnelu--sion of the armistice is us follows.— ,

(in millions of X.) Dec., Aug., lu--1918. 1919. crease. Tm ports 11(1.2 1-'B.S *'2.6 Kxports 3S-3 "J.B 1 He-exports 3.1 , l :, -3 Last December, although imports were 'much .smaller than row, the, excess of imports in the month amounted to as much as ,£74,800,000, or at the rate ot nearIyI'OOO.fiOO.OOO per annum. In eight months, it will lie seen, imparts have increased by J!.12,600,000, while aggregate exports have increased by ,£18.700,000, of which £15,500,000 was duo lo the increase in British exports only. Komuilv. the exports of British goods have doubled since the close of last year, while the exports of imported goods (entrepot trade) have multiplied about fivo times. The entrepot trade had. been killed bv the necessities of I he. blockade, and il has revived in a much shorter period than might have been expected. The Excess of Iniports. The realised excess of imports in the first eight months of this year amounts to XIfH.SOO.OOO. It. is probable, therefore. that on the whole year the excess will he .as much as ,£700,000,000. It must be remenibereft', however, that high freights are a considerable factor in the import values, which are recorded at the Custom house, c.i.f. (inclusive of freight and insurance charges). Indeed, the earnings of British ships will piny . no small part in meeting the trade balance. It is a little- difficult in the circumstance's to say what British freight and insurant owning.? will amount to ill the ypnr, and they have been variously estimated at ironi .£250,000.000 to »,000,000;. probably the former may be taken a.s a. conservafive figure. Allowing for this, I'll 6 adverse balance is reduced to ,£150.000,000. "We have further to take account of about ■£150,000,01)0 receivable as interest on oversea investments, which reduces the excess of imports to about ,£300,000,000. This is a serious balance, but tho h'ealthv riso in our export trade and the increase in British tonnage give good hope that, the position will continue to inwove in our favour.

This "cpnis the more probable when wo look (it the broad analysis of British • commerce last month:— (In Millions of £.) Reimports. Exports exports Class. (British (Imported goods), goods). i'eod, drink, tobacco G9.8 ' 2.6 -1.3 Raw materials ... 9.6 8.1 Manufacture-; .... 20.9 81.7 2.9 Miscellaneous 8 .9 — Total 1-18.8 7-1,8 15.3 Prospects of Expansion. The fact that Hritish exports readied the rate of ,£1,081,M0,000 per annum in August, is the more remarkable when we remember that some of our normal markets were out of.notion. As the above table shows; our exports of raw malcriiils. eh icily coal,' last month, accounted for ,£9,500,000, but our exports of coal in August vere le.ss than 2,500,000 tons. The great European market as a whole plays nothing like its accustomed i>;'.rt in these expert figures. Considerations such as these slimv that. it. is reasonable to ex-pect-that we shall see in the near future a continued expansion of our export trade. . Uy far the greater part of our exports consists of articles wholly or mainly manufactured. Cottons lasl month rose to the lemarknble figure of .£22,136,000. High prices, of course, played a very largs part in this result. In 1913, the •vear before, the war, we sold abroad i7,2OD.WKiib. of cotton yarn for the sum of .£1,255,000. ' J/i=t month, so greatly had values risen in the interim, we exported IS,026,00011), of cotton, yarn for the sum of ,£3.1-15,000. Our export trade, while enormously greater in value than in i 913, is still considerably less in quantity.

Comparison with 1913. It "s of no lit 110 .interest to comnnre 0111 exports of August, 1919. with lliuse of August, 1913, which wa* a year of very good trade-.-— Aug., 1913, Aug., 19!!). Million £. Million ,C. Torn], drink*, lobacco 2,800.1100 2,1.00,000 Baiv materials 5,-100.000 9,500.000 Mi=ct*llalirous 800,000 900,000 Manufactures— Tron and sleel ... 4,11S,0fll) fi.-/02,001 Other metals 987.090 1,7R9.0f1() Cntlerv, hardware 1129.000 778,000 Klectrieal goods ... 285.000 (ili3,fl(!(l Machinery 2,88(5,000 3.-_»3S.(KK) Ships (new) 2,921,000 177,009 Me.'infii Mures of wood 160,000 134,000 Yarns and textilos— Cotton KU7WKW •»,ISfi.o«9 Wool 3..>71.0n0 IO.WiI.OM Silk* 212.000 :i«2.0i 1 0 others i.050.000 i.?fii.nno Aojjarpl 1,526.000 1,«38.(W) Chemicals 1.5-lf.OOft :U r >B.flflO Other manufactures 4.318,009 9.550,00!) cCW.IOO.OOO C7t-.8C0.000 In noint of value the exnorts of la~f month make a record, and in point nf fioanliitv it can hardly lie Md that, »' ; (h the ink Fcnrcpl.v dry upon tlm Versailles Peace Treaty, our exporter have done badly. On (lie whole, the August (rade returns afford grounds for tV-hoPef that the United Kingdom will eoiitinuo to play her old part in the world's export trade.