HOW BELGIUM HAS COME BACK.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 September 1920, Page 11

HOW BELGIUM HAS COME BACK.

It has been a matter of common knowledge for months that Belgium, the chief victim of tlie world-war, has been making remarkable strides toward complete economic recovery. Tlie amazing , progress that has been'made in the last i year and a-half is stated officially anil definitely by Emile Francqui, Minister of State and Director of the Societe Generale of Belgium, and Florimond Hankar, Director of the Banque Nation- ; ale of Belgium, in a pamphlet issued by J. P. Morgan and the Guaranty Trust Company. It will be remembered that the Germans destroyed a third of the Belgian factories, over 1300 miles of railway, and 1400 bridges, and carried away an enormous amount of machinery. Now, say these Belgian authorities, their country's factories "are producing oTt an average about threefourths as much as before the war; her railroads are operating 80 per cent, of the normal number of freight trains and 60 per cent, of the normal number of passenger trains." In agriculture Belgium suffered comparatively little, since only 1 per cent, j of the total area was seriously devastated, so that last year by intensified production with governmental encouragement "agricultural production in general surpassed the average in pre-war ■ years." Cnal-gtines were kept in oper- | ation by the Germans, and were not destroyed, although the machinery de- i predated. This comparatively small ; handicap has been so far overcome ; "that in the first three months of this year, the output of coal actually exceeded the pre-war production, representing in April 105 per cent. oE the production in the corresponding month of 1913." When we come to iron and steel we find tlmt Belgium has a real task before her. Belgian metallurgical industries suf- i fered more at the hands of the Germans i than did any other. The destruction and pillage were intended to eliminate for a long time the competition of ; these industries in the world's markets. , In 1913 Belgium produced 2,500,000 long tons of steel, about 80 per cent, of which in various forms was exported. Belgian high-grade steels are famous throughout the world. The steel industry prospered greatly in the decade be- i fore tlio war; the output, in fact, in- i creased 150 per cent, during that period. Blast furnaces that were destroyed by . tlie Germans, have been rebuilt, more : than half of the machinery that was , removed has been recovered, and the , steel mills are producing about 4.0 per ( cent, of their pre-war output. If suffi- , cient coke were available to operate all , the plants at capacity, the production , would be between 50 per cent, and CO per cent, of normal. . , The Belgian zinc industry—which be- ; fore the war supplied more than a fifth of the world's output of unmanufactured zinc, and three-fourths of whose production was exported—was l almost completely destroyed during the German J occupation. The industry has now so ' far recovered that in March the output ' was CO per cent, of normal pre-war pro- ] duction. Only the lack of raw mater- 1 ial is preventing complete resumption. 1 A contract was recently made for 240,- i 000 tons of Australian zinc ore, which 1 should bring material relief to this in- J dustry. The textile industries, says our Bel- ■ gian authorities, "were not so system- ' atically damaged as the metallurgical 1 group, although copper and brass parts, ' belting, etc., were carried away." We ; are told further: The spinning and i weaving mills are now producing about. 80 per of their normal output. At the beginning of the current year, 300,- ; 000 cotton spindles were in operation, representing about 86 per cent, of the total spindles in operation in 1913. The 1 resumption of production at the full prewar rate is mainly dependent upon obtaining the raw material. Woollen mills are operating at capacity rates. Before the war Belgian flax-spindles numbered 330,000; there are now utilisable 311,000, With 103,000 in actual operation. In this division of industry also the chief difficulty is the shortage of raw material. Glass has long been an extremely important part of Bplgian industry. The. Germans destroyed one of the eight large plate-glass factories; the others arc now in operation. "All the windowglass plants are in full or partial operation again. Owing to shortage of raw material, the production is restricted to about 60 per cent, of normal." When the war broke out Belgium "had a greater railway mileage in proportion to area than any other country." This included, besides an almost equal mileage of eight narrow-gauge roads, more than 2500 miles of State-owned stan-dard-gauge lines. As, the Belgian authorities tell the story of destruction and recovery: The Germans destroyed more than 1300 miles of the standard-gauge track and 1400 bridges. By January, 1920, all except fifteen miles of the destroyed trackage was restored, and permanent or temporary structures had replaced the destroyed bridges. Though reclaiming and repairing the stolen railway equipment, the depleted Belgian stock of locomotives and cars has been greatly augmented. In January, 1919, Belgium had 578 locomotives, of which only 279 were in running condition; in March, 1920, she had 4220, of which 60 per cent., or nino times as many as in January, 1919, were in condition for use. Orders have been placed for 550 additional new locomotives. About 60 per cent, of the pre-war pass'engei? traffic and 80 per cent, of the freight traffic have been resumed, Belgian ports, Antwerp in particular, are beginning to resume their important place in world trade. Last year the Belgians made large purchases abroad of raw materials and machinery. As we read: The imports in 1919 totalled 5,075,000,000 francs, and the exports 2,296,000,000 francs. For the first two months of 1920 exports amounted to 1,041,000,000 francs, or almost half as much as the entire year 1919. Imports for these two months were valued at 1,728,000,000 francs. Belgium now has a favorable balance of trade with France, Holland, Germany, and other countries. Only with countries from which food and raw materials are being purchased largely, such as the United States, Canada, and Argentina, is the balance heavily against Belgium.