EMPIRE TRADE.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 19889, 28 March 1930, Page 21

EMPIRE TRADE.

CO-ORDINATION OF POLICY.

PERMANENT ECONOMIC SECRETARIAT.

(reou OCR OWH COBBBSPOKDKNT.)

LONDON, February 20,

Many practical recommendations are put forward in a report prepared by the Federation of British industries upon various aspects of inter-Imperial trade. This is for submission to the British Preparatory Committee to the Imperial Conference which meets this year.

This Preparatory Committee consists of representatives of the F.BJ., the Association of British Chambers of Commerce, and the Chamber of Shipping, and was set up with the idea of securing complete 1 unanimity between the various national organisations before the meeting of the conference.

The report begins by setting out the reasons for concluding that the moat urgent necessity exists for this country to take, steps to increase, trade with the Dominions, and urges that it is essential, in considering problems of inter-Imperial trade, to take into account the economic desires of the. Dominions. Bound up by these questions, it says, is that of migration: "The only real way to stimulate Empire migration on a large scale is to develop the prosperity of individual Dominions."

The first of the recommendations made by the FJB.L is:

That steps should be taken to "rationalise." as far aB possible, Empire industrial production. "It must be admitted," the report adds, "that each Dominion will develop to a greater or lesser extent its manufacturing industries. The Federation trusts that each Dominion will only foster those industries which are economically sound, and therefore in the long run of benefit to the country concerned. At the present time there are undoubtedly many industries in various parts of the Dominions which are economically unsound, incapable of continuing without substantial and exaggerated protection, and which are in . reality a charge upon the community rather than an advantage to it, and a handicap upon the primary producer, upon whose success the prosperity of the Dominions depends. The Federation would urge that the various Dominions should consider the extent to which uneconomic industries are in existence and should so shape- their policy as not artificially to maintain in existence such uneconomic industries.

Mutual Exploration. "The object to aim at should be the rationalisation of Empire production, by which each Dominion should manufacture what she can with advantage, and facilitate to the utmost the import from groat Britain and other parts of the Empire of those manufactures which she is not capable of producing economically. To achieve this it is essential that individual industries in Great Britain and the Dominions should together explore the possibilities of - rationalising their production. Without such mutual exploration of the question within individual industries progress will be slow, and practical results few and far between." Objection is taken to the present

system on the ground that the conferences are composed primarily of who are chiefly and naturally concerned with the political or governmental aspects of the question to be considered. It is pointed out that better machinery exists in the Economic Section of the League of Nations for discussing economic problems with foreign countries than for discussing them with sister nations of the British Empire.

Definite Recommendations. The definite recommendations which the Federation makes for consideration by the next Imperial Conference are:— At as early a date as possible an Imperial trade conference should be hold of an investigatory, advisory and non-political nature, of persona nominated by each Government of the Empire, but acting in their - personal capacity, composed of one or more chiof Government officials concerned with economic and trade questions, representatives of industry, both employers and employed, and; representatives of commerce, finance, shipping, and agriculture.

The, conference should examine the question of inter-Imperial trade with a view of laying down a sound basis for Imperial economic policy. In particular,' the report urges, an effort should be made to ascertain definitely the views of the Dominions on what further advantages they are 'prepared to grant to British trade, and upon what terms they are prepared to grant those advantages. A clear statement of Dominion views on that point would enable the question to be considered as a whole as a matter of business and not of sentiment, instead of, as at present, discussion centring largely upon what this country is, or may be, prepared to do without any assurance as to the measure of advantage which may be expected in return.

A Permanent Secretariat. In addition to the establishment of such Imperial trade conferences, the Federation suggests that an Imperial Economic Secretariat should be established, formed of men with economic and administrative experience, drawn from all parts of the Empire, to act as a permanent secretariat for the Imperial Conferences.

Passing to the policy which, in the Federation's opinion, it is desirable that the Empire should follow, the report says, that reciprocal interchange of commodities is the goal to aim at. As to free trade within the Empire with a tariff wall outside, "even if this may be an ideal which many may believe is capable ultimately of realisation, it cannot for many years to come be more than a vision to which, perhaps, various more practical steps may gradually lead. The Federation does not advocate a' policy of free trade within the Empire as a concrete and practical proposition to be ventilated at the Economic Conference, not because its members are out of sympathy with the ideal, but because the necessities of the immediate, future should, in its view, he mot by more practical proposals.'' Commenting upon the report and largely approving it, the "Financial Times" observes: "The Federation gets on. to very debatable ground when it urges that the Dominions should refrain from developing industries which are economically unsound. submission is unexceptionable.. in •- itself, but it is a nice point to decide which of the nascent Dominion industries are uneconomic, and who is to convince its inhabitants that an uneconomic industry of to-day cannot become the economic industry of to-morrow?"