"Political Talking Point”

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30534, 1 September 1964, Page 3

"Political Talking Point”

(N.Z. Press Association) AUCKLAND, August 31. New Zealand should be more concerned with its over-all balance of trade, rather than its imbalance with Australia, said Sir Alan Westerman today. As chief of the Trade and Industry Department, Canberra, he is here to inspect Australian trade offices. Sir Alan Westerman said New Zealand’s current imbalance of trade with Australia was more a political talking point than anything else. "What should worry you is your over-all balance,” he said. Australia was not concerned whether it bought more than it sold from say America, Britain and Japan, said Sir Alan Westerman. It was the over-all balance with all nations that counted, and that was what New Zealand should concentrate on. He said New Zealand had to find products which would give it a pre-emptive place in the Australian market before it could hope to improve much on its imbalance of trade.

This would not be easy because Australia was a free market, open to all. But there were opportunities.

He cited the textile industry, especially carpet making. Here New Zealand held the advantage because it produced better coarse wools than Australia. But at the moment, instead of sending the finished product to Australia, New Zea-

land exported coarse wools to the Australian carpet industry. New Zealand’s cheap hydroelectric power reserves could be used for the development of the chemical industry.

He did not think there would be any startling changes in the pattern of trade between the twb countries if free trade was agreed to on certain goods.