BRITISH EXPORTS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 107, 8 May 1941, Page 7

BRITISH EXPORTS

Foreign Trade's High Level

Maintained

NO FALLING OFF THIS YEAR

British Official Wireless. RUGBY, May 7. The Secretary of the Department of Overseas Trade, Mr. Harcourt Johnstone, speaking in London, said that in spite of the progressive loss of markets through Germany's invasion of half the countries of Europe, Britain's foreign trade still managed to maintain an extraordinarily high level. In the last complete pre-war year, which was 1938, Britain exported £417,000,000 worth of goods, but owing to the industi-y of the people and the enterprise of manufacturers, in the first full year of war, 1940, Britain exported £413,000,000 worth of goods. He thought that was truly remarkable considering the loss of fully 30 per cent of her markets. Since the beginning of this year the Government decided not to publish figures of export trade, but he could say without violating any confidences that in the first lour months of this year there had been no falling off in foreign trade. It must not be supposed, Mr. Johnstone added, that because the United States has passed the Lease-or-Lend Act Britain could go on gaily without buying goods from America. It must be remembered that it was a matter of lease and lend ;and not of gift.