LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Stit,—The figures in the letter from the Empire Industries Association are, I hope obviously, misleading. To compare 1932 at the bottom of the world slump, when Protection was already in force here, with subsequent years up to 1937, in which all countries were slowly but tem- porarily struggling out of the slump, is clearly unfair; to attribute that process in our case, and still more in the rest of the world, to Ottawa, verges on the grotesque. Your statement which your correspondent challenges—that " Ottawa produced an expansion in intra-Imperial trade " —is itself rather too favourable to Ottawa. Between 5929 and 1937—two fairly comparable years, being the best respectively of the pre- and post- Ottawa periods—there was an increase in volume of 121 per cent. in our retained imports from the Empire, but a decrease of 18 per cent. in our own exports to the Empire.
The second part of your statement that " Ottawa resulted at the same time in a substantial reduction in international trade " is perfectly cor- rect if you mean our trade with foreign countries. This fell in volume between the same two year by 25 per cent. in our retained imports, and by 3o per cent. in our exports; it is also true that world trade fell off, of which Ottawa was a contributory cause.
Your correspondent also asserts quite incorrectly that " the import duties transferred a large proportion of our purchasing-power to the import of raw material rather than of manufactured articles." The fact is that between 1929 and 1937 our retained imports of raw materials from all sources fell off in volume by 2 per cent., and of the equally important intermedire products by 17 per cent. Fully manufactured goods actually formed in 1937 a slightly larger proportion of our total retained imports than in 1929, but even then it was under 12 per cent., in- cluding industrial machinery. In most years it was under to per cent.
Finally, may I remind your readers that at Hot Springs we and each of our Dominions, among some 4o nations, agreed to promote freer international trade without discrimination?—Yours faithfully,
A. S. COMYNS CARL Temple Gardens, E.C. 4.
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