ENGLISH TRADE WITH FRANCE

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24814, 2 March 1946, Page 7

ENGLISH TRADE WITH FRANCE

FINANCIAL AGREEMENT TERMINATED

(Rec. 11 p.m.) PARIS, Feb. 28. A Foreign Office statesman stated that Britain had declined to renew the financial agreement between Britain and France, which was signed last year and which expired to-day. The spokesman expressed surprise at the suddenness of the British decision, Which was indicated in “a terse, ambiguous Note received by France on February 24.” He added that the ter? qiination would practically end Eng-lish-French trade. Reuter’s recalls that the EnglishFrench financial agreement opened reciprocal 12-months’ credits of £100,000,000 sterling for French purchases in Britain and 20,000,000,000 francs for British purchases in France. British purchases last year were only a fraction of the total credit provided, but French purchases already exceeded the stipulated amount. France yesterday transferred to the account of the British Government £40,000,000 sterling in gold, representing settlement of part of the balance due to Britain under the terms of last year’s financial agreement, France, during the year, imported capital goods for reconstruction. Britain was unable to import much from France, as the gpods available were mainly of a luxury type, excessively high-priced.