BRITISH TRADE

Hokitika Guardian, 20 May 1926, Page 4

BRITISH TRADE

OPTIMISTIC NOTE. WORLD’S PREMIER. TRADING. NATION. WELLINGTON, M'ay 18. Mr L. B. Beale, British Trade Commissioner, as guest of the New Zealand Association of British Manufactures’ Agents, delivered to-day ail address on the immense increase of British trade since the war, out-distanc-ing in many respects even that of the United States. After thanking the association for inviting him to lie their guest, at his first meeting with any public body in New Zealand, Mr Beale said, in his outline of British trade conditions today that he based liis observations on wlrat he saw during a six months’ olficial tour of Britain from June to December last. He conferred with between 000 and 700 manufacturers in the Old Country; and, in most cases, he visited tlieir works, so that his contact had been very intimate.

“The bright sp’ots in British, industry last year,” he said, “may be summed up in these words, ‘the people of Great Britain were never better housed, better fed or better clothed than they are to-day. They have a fuller measure of unemployment insurance and old age pensions on very broad lines are in operation. Britain’s debts are paid in full, and there is mi owed confiden ec. ’

“These are some of the bright spots that one cannot put into actual terms of money,” said Mr Beale, “hut, for specific instances oT our progress one can mention electrical machinery, in the export of which Britain leads the world. Before the war Germany lieid that position. After the war, until two years ago, the United States led all other countries in the export of Ibis particular skilled manufacture, but today the United Kingdom easily leads her competitors in actual value. Me are now exporting from the United Kingdom 2500 tons a month of the finest electrical machinery. This is several hundred tons a month greater than in 1013. Our progress in the export of motor cars is also remarkable. The last two years have witnessed 150 per cent increase, and increases of 130 per cent in the motor-cycle export, 100 per cent in rubber tyres export and 25 per cent in musical instrument export are other bright spots. “On the reverse side of ilie ledger the dull spots fire coal, iron and s'col and shipbuilding, but tlie uol result of all Britain’s post war industrial efforts means that she bolds a greater share of world trade to-day than she did in 1913, in addition to which there are more actually in work in Britain than there were in pre-war years, II any further evidence were required of Britain’s progress it is to he found in her success in the open markets of the world, such as Japan. For instance: Ail export committee, recently examined the cpndit.ioii of steel rails on all Japanese railway lilies. After testing and examining all the rails laid the committee found that rails of British make had easily outlasted all other makes, and, in future, Japan will use

rails made to British specifications only. In Canada Britain lias, in recent years, secured immense orders for automatic telephone equipment—formerly secured by our good friends the Americans. To-day wo are supplying America with fairly substantial quantities of Portland cement, and we are building ocean freighters for her. We are building complete gasworks for Den-, mark, wo are supplying Japan with Diesel engines for ocean liners, we are supplying Canada with special Diesel engines for railway trains which are operating between Montreal and Toronto a distance of 400 miles, at onefifth of the cost of steam operation. I could go on ad infinitum giving the truth about British trade and progress, but, in brief, this is what we have done since the war. We have paid every debt. Wo have increased our exports. "We have increased our imports. We hold a bigger share of world trade than ever before, and wo finished in 1925 with £28,000,000 on the right side, of the ledger. “The outstanding feature to me,” said Mr Beale, “of post war events is the trend of local manufacture in all countries. True such manufacture takes tho form generally of the .simpler and coarser forms of goods, but this creates rather a different aspect, of international trade, because there are more nations to-day with a surplus of industrial products to sell. Nevertheless, Britain is holding her own as the premier trading nation of the world. The order of nations in trade is: (1) Unit, cd Kingdom. (2) United States, (3) Germany. These are followed by France and Japan. Britain is pinning her faith on quality, aided by competitive price and quantity of production, hut we-shall never, I believe, sacrifice quality to price.”