LABOUR’S TRADE REVIVAL

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVII, 25 November 1927, Page 4

LABOUR’S TRADE REVIVAL

TpHE keen competition of Continental buyers at our wool sales is taken as one of the current indications that matters industrial and commercial in Europe are experiencing a decided revival. The Americans are shrewd observers in connections of this kind, and it is interesting to note that one of them, mghiy qualified to -speak, has expresseU iiuuseU to the same effect, xieviewmg ms-experiences on a recent visit to c-urope, or. rviein, director 01 the United btates Bureau of foreign amt Domestic Commerce, slates tna, isuropean business lias tor some time been snowing convincing evidence 01 recovery, and that despair among business men nas been replaced oy a spirit of determination. Even this year’s conlerence at Geneva and Stockholm had already had “helpiul reactions” upon recent tariff and trade treaty negotiations. Krom a physical aspect, too, Ur. Klein found some favourable changes. Transport facilities had notably improved during the last twelve months. Air links had been expanded, railway traffic was quicker, and even shipping was showing signs of revival, especially because of the further replacements of steam by motor power. Unemployment was being reduced, industrial disturbances were fewer, and production was being steadily increased. Moreover there had been a significant recovery in numerous “invisible items” in Europe’s foreign trade. -

This American authority specially notes that tha value of the middlemen’s services performed by the United Kingdom was still very large, though a part of the present returns on commercial and industrial loans were due at least as much to American prosperity as to European initiative. “British capital,” writes Dr. Klein, “still owns 1,000.000.000 dollars (200 million sterling) worth of the railroads in Argentina, a good portion of whose traffic is in the wool, hides, quebracho, etc., which make up the 83,000,000 dollars of annual imports of the United States from Argentina. Every carload of wool shipped from the ranches of Australia and Argentina to the United States contributes its share of dividends to thousands of British railway stock owners.” Dr. Klein holds that the 800,000,000 dollars advanced by America to Germany since 1924 have been responsible for at. least a substantial portion of the industrial and commercial recovery of that country. There were still directions, however, in which Europe could help herself if she would only face the facts. Dr. Klein found too much inclination, whenever trade was temporarily distressed, to look to the Government for subsidies from publie funds, credit-insurance devices, and export bonuses. At the same time he thought that the influence of Government interference could be overrated It was true that trade barriers were still hindering development all over the Continent, but it was easy to be fascinated by the picturesque details of large-scale manufacturing made possible by an unimpeded domestic market, such as the United States. The 'secret of prosperity in the New World, according to Dr. Klein, lies not in the massing of business resources and of markets, not in mass production, but rather in mass consumption — in better methods of distribution, in higher wages, in improved working conditions, and ,jn increased buying power.