MORE HOPEFUL.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 206, 1 September 1938, Page 11

MORE HOPEFUL.

STOCK EXCHANGES.

Reactions on Business Less Severe. GOLD RISES STILL HIGHER. United Press Association.—Copyright. (Received 12 noon.) LONDON, August 31. The fapt that, few are pressing shares for sale indicates to City authorities that investors in Britain are hopeful that the international situation will clear up without conflict. Chief sufferers from the Czech crisis have been brokers whose turnover, which has long been small, has become almost negligible. - British funds are steady and a more confident tone is also noted on most European bourses, including Berlin, where there is slight recovery. Paris is firm, Government stocks closing at the best levels. In the absence of efforts by the authorities to peg exchange, sterling depreciated further in terms of the dollar.

The Australian Associated Press learns that t/.e decline below the traditional parity is a signal of heavy speculative sales of exchange funds— gold losses must have been considerable in the past 24 hours. The flight of capital from Europe to the United States is being accelerated. The Aquitania yesterday landed at New York 21,314,000 dollars in gold (about £4,263,000 sterling) from Britain, and 2,073,000 dollars from Belgium. The price of gold has risen to £7 3/3 J per fine ounce. Sterling has depreciated and the pound is now worth 4.85J dollars, while the exchange rate in France is 178$ francs to the pound sterling. The sharp rise in gold has carried the price 4£d above yesterday's level to the highest point reached since early in 1935. It is 3/10} higher than at the beginning of this year. Sterling has depreciated in terms of the dollar and the present exchange rate is the lowest for a considerable period, comparing with. 4.91f dollars to the pound at the beginning of August, and 4.f15J dollars two months ago.