TRADE TREATY TALKS

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 154, 26 March 1938, Page 11

TRADE TREATY TALKS

Britain And America

EARLY DIFFICULTIES OVERCOME Hammering Out Agreement IMPORTANCE NOT TO BE EXAGGERATED (British Official Wireless.) (Received March 25, 5 p.m.) Rugby, March 24. Optimism regarding a possible Anglo American Trade Agreement as the result of the present negotiations was expressed by the Parliamentary Secre tary to the Board of Trade, Mr. Euan Wallace, during a debate in the House d£ Commons which covered all aspects of the Ministry of Labour’s work. Particular attention was directed to developments calculated to Stimulate trade and employment. x Mr. Wallace said: “A commercial agreement with the United States would be the most important ever entered into by us or by it. It would include not only ourselves but also the whole British Empire. There has been considerable difficulty in finding a basis but that difficulty has been overcome and an agreement is being hammered out. Trade Agreement Only. “Trade interests will not be sacrificed to political • considerations,’’ he said. “Nothing more than s trade agreement is under consideration at the present moment, but it is impossible to exaggerate the importance of anything which draws this country closer to the United States.” Mr. Wallace gave an encouraging estimate of Britain’s present and future trade position. The expansion of British exports last year had been mainly due to the improved conditions ih the primary producing countries, and it looked as if they would be able to maintain their imports from Britain at recent levels. Any improvement in the United States would be of immense benefit to British export Industries.” Record Level of Employment. The Minister of Labour, Mr. Ernes', Brown, pointed out that the number of people unemployed for more than six months had been reduced to 279,000, which wars a smaller figure than at any time during the past four years. The remarkable recovery during that period had broken almost every previ ous record for the number employed. Mr. Brown remarked that a great public works programme Was being carried out by local authorities, public undertakings and Government departments at a cost of between £250,000,000 and £300,000,000. The Government’s contracts for the defence programme to the end of January amounted to £344,768,700, of which £96,492,000 had gone to the scheduled areas, he said.