RECIPROCAL TRADE

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 284, 28 August 1944, Page 4

RECIPROCAL TRADE

N.Z. Butter For U.S.A.?

For years the most powerful influence in American politics had been the farm bloc, which wanted protection, but today that was changed, and the industrialists, who were seeking world trade, had the dominant vote in Congress, said Mr. F. R. Cometti, of General Motors (N.Z.), Ltd., in a recent address to the BritishAmerican Co-operation Movement in Wellington. s Mr. Cometti expressed the opinion that slowly but surely America would turn to the receipt of goods from countries like New Zealand. For instance, the. American farmer could not supply all bis country’s butter requirements and if tho present high standard of living in the States was mantained after the -war there would be a market for a huge quantity of iruported butter. A suggestion finding wide acceptance in America, continued Mr. Cometti, was that if America bought such commodities as butter overseas she should pay ’for them at her own domestic rate, even though that were higher than world parity. The extra payments so made would establish larger credits in the United States for spending on manufactured goods for importation .into the countries supplying the commodities to the United States. American business men, said . Mr. Cometti, -were anxious to see the implementation of Artele 7 of the Lend-Lease Agreement, which New Zealand had signed. This provided for the removal of all discriminatory tariffs by the countries which received lend-lease aid.