CHECK TO NATIONAL RECOVERY

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 34, 3 November 1934, Page 6

CHECK TO NATIONAL RECOVERY

Dr. J. B. Condliffe on World Conditions I WHAT LEAGUE OF NATIONS STATISTICS SHOW Dominion Special Service. Auckland, November 2. After an absence from New Zealand of seven years, Dr. J. B. Condliffe, formerly Professor of Economics at Canterbury College, and now a member of tbe Secretariat of the League of Nations at Geneva, returned to Auckland by the Mariposa on a holiday visit to-day. Dr. Condliffe was for some time on the staff of the Institute of Pacific Relations, but was appointed to the Secretariat of the League three years ago. Describing his work, Dr. Condliffe said he'was attached to the Economic Intelligence Service, which was a part of the financial section of the Secretariat. One of his major tasks was to produce every year a world economic survey volume which was a regular study of economic conditions and developments throughout the world. Tbe 1934 volume was issued just before his departure from Geneva. “Last year there was distinct evidence of recovery in most countries measured by increased production and diminishing unemployment,” Dr. Condliffe said. "The index of world production increased by about 12 per cent., but in each country nearly all this extra production was for the national market and. international trade continued to fall. The statistics for August of this year showed that international trade was only 32 per cent, of what it was in 1929. There is now definite evidence of a check to national recovery. It is clear that the expansion of internal markets cannot be proceeded with indefinitely. and it does not seem possible to get back to pre-depression conditions by purely national efforts. Production is even falling in gold standard countries where costs are relatively high.” As an instance of high costs in gold standard countries, Dr. Condliffe mentioned the marked falling off in tourist traffic to France. Americans who had previously gone to Paris to spend a month now found the rate of exchange against them and stayed only a matter of days. A further factor was that, trade restrictions bad increased the cost of living in. France. Dr. Condliffe did not feel free to comment on the quota position in England. Tbe effect of the trade restrictions. he said, varied with a particular commodity and particular country. For instance, the bacon marketing scheme in England had had the curious result that for a time the Danes received more money for less bacon. Some people attempted to quote this, as an argument in favour of quotas, but the position was really highly complex in respect to different commodities.

“We who are on the Secretariat of the League of Nations are really international civil servants,” Dr. Condliffe continued. “As such we can hardly discuss the affairs of the different nations. Most of our work is done almost informally in committee and through meetings of experts, and. as such, does not receive the light of publicity. However, I feel justified in saying that bad as the depression has been in Central Europe, it would have been infinitely worse if the League had not assisted in propping up the financial structure of Austria three years ago.” As an example of the silence with which the League pursued its work, Dr. Condliffe instanced its effoits in suppressing the drug traffic. An Australian was at the head of this section of the League’s activities, he said, and from time to time news was published of the breaking up of a drug traffic ring in some country: In all such cases it could fairly be said that action was taken through Geneva aud as a result of the work of a small group of meu whose object it was to dodge the limelight. The drug traffic had literally been run out of western Europe. Dr. Condliffe also said that part of hisduties in Geneva consisted of keeping fully in touch with New Zealand papers in order to inform the SecretaryGeneral of the League—a Frenchman — of developments in the Dominion. Residence abroad had made him appreciate more thau ever the fullness of the foreign news service enjoyed by the New Zealand Press, while the presentation of national affairs was admirably achieved.