TRADE WITH BRITAIN

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21084, 8 February 1934, Page 6

TRADE WITH BRITAIN

TO THB »DITO« CT TH I PBBSS. Sir,—The figures quoted by Mr Goodfellow as reported in your issue of Tuesday are interesting. It appears that whereas Australia buys from Great Britain nearly half as much as she exports to her, New Zealand apparently purchases from Great Britain less than a quarter of the value of her exports. Mr Hutchinson in "The Press" today contradicts the statement made by Mr Goodfellow to the effect that New Zealand has an adverse trade balance with Great Britain amounting to £24,5C0,000. Mr Hutchinson reduces this amount by £19,500,000 to £5.000,000 by the simple method of deducting "interest and other payments." This appears to me to be a most remarkable argument, but if it is correct, it fellows that our trade balance can easily be reversed from an adverse to a favourable one, by simply borrowing a few more millions! In fact, apparently the more we borrow and consequently the more we have to pay in interest, tEe less need we purchase in goods ■ from Britain. In other words, our debts become our assets!— Yours, etc., DIOGENES. February 7, 1934.