Rapid Expansion In Britain’s Export Trade

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27402, 15 July 1954, Page 8

Rapid Expansion In Britain’s Export Trade

LONDON. The development of British exports In 1954 has been mainly in engineering products. The April total for this category maintained the increase recorded in the first quarter of the year and in May there was a further rise of over £1,000,000. In the first quarter the increase over 1953 was chiefly in shipments of machinery, especially electric machinery, agricultural tractors; aeroplane engines, and refrigerating and "office machinery. Since March, however, the principal increase has been in shipments of road vehicles, exports of which have risen from £24,000,000 a month in January and February to £28,500,000 in May. Three factors contributed to this very rapid expansion. First, the end of the winter check to exports of cars to Canada (although shipments of passenger cars to Canada so far this year are £2,000,000 or 84 per cent, less than in the corresponding five months of 1953); second, ,the seasonal increase in. demand for British cars in the market of Western Europe as a result of which exports of cars to these markets in May were valued at nearly double the average of January and February* and third, the further relaxation of Australian import restrictions, which has led to the doubling of car exports to Australia both in number and value in the same period. The expansion of the Australian market has also been an important factor in the increase in exports of metals by £1,000,000 a month between the first quarter and April/May. Most of this increase was in shipments of iron and steel. There was little change in April and May in exports of textiles in total. Shipments of wool yarns and fabrics

were £1,000,000 a month less than in the first quarter (although there was a slight increase in shipments of wool tops); about half of this decline was offset by increases in exports of cotton and rayon yarns and fabrics. Increase in Chemicals Among other manufactures there was an increase of £2,000,000 in exports of chemicals in May over April which already showed an improvement over the first quarter; the rate then was in turn £1,000,000 a month more than the 1953 average. Comparing the first five months of 1954 with the first half of last year there has been an increase in the value of chemical exports of £2,000,000 a month, or 15 per cent. Most of the increase has gone to sterling countries, particularly Australia, India and New Zealand, but there have been useful increases in shipments to Western Europe, chiefly Western Germany and Sweden, and also to the Argentine and Egypt. The expansion in exports has been shared by all the principal sections of the trade with the exception of fertilisers.

Perhaps the most notable increase has been in exports of plastic materials which have averaged almost £2,000,000 a month in January to May—a level only previously reached in a few isolated months, and 29 per cent higher than the average in the first half of last year. Other exports have changed little in April and May compared with the first quarter. Compared with the first half of 1953 they increased in the five months by £2,500,000 a month or 8 per cent., the principal improvements being in shipments of refined petroleum and refined sugar.