BOOMS & SLUMPS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 140, 30 June 1937, Page 8

BOOMS & SLUMPS

-Own Correspondent.)

League Oificial Advises . Wise Spending SAVE FOR BAD TIMES

(By Telegraph—

; AUCKLAND, Last Night. "Altliough we have not yet fully reeovered to the 1929 position some people are beqoming anxious about our present degree of prosperity/' said Mr VV. R. Crocker, a representative of tlie International Labour Oflice of tbe League of Natious, who was a through passenger on tbe Monterey which arrived from Sydney to-day. ''Of course, one'factor behind it is the rearmament race in Kurope and all that that implies. The rise in the price of wool and other materials is largely due to that. thus the prosperity which is being experienced by Australia and jSfew Zealand is partly artificial and how secure it is we don't know." Ai'ter meeting members of the Commonwealth and State Governments Mr Crocker was impressed by the general desxre to prevent the present^ prosperity from running iato a boota and in that respect Australia shared the feelmg of Engiland and the United States and many other countries. Asked what the Australian Governments were doing to help prosperity,, Mr . Crocker replied that there was a tendency to reduce public works as the industries of the country developed. This was in accordance with th© prineiple that in times of rising prosperity expenditure should be curtailed on such works as far as practicable and that public investments should be deferred until the downward cycle began. Perhaps no one fully understood the reasons for the trade cycle of booms and slumps, but it was generally agreed that it oould be mitigated through monetary measures, particularly by the right timing of investments in public works. In Australia, he stated, it was rememibered that only a few years ago about one-third of thh registered workers were totally unemployed, another large proportion were partially out of work, and tbe incomes of the middle ciasses -were greatly reduced. The people appeared to feei the organised thrift offered the only effective means of guarding against a repetition of these hardships. . Commenting on the increase in the Australian. basic wage, Mr Crocker said : "The reasons for the action of the: Arbitration Court appear fo me to,' be incontestable and, many em.ployers have rccognised that." Australia has recovered her prosperity to a considerablo degree, he said, . and " the rise in the basic wage was an important step towards spreading the: increascd purcbasing power through the commuuity.