CONVERSION LOAN

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 117, 13 November 1929, Page 12

CONVERSION LOAN

QUESTION IN COMMONS

SXOWDEN-' ON DIFFICULTIES"

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graph—Copyright. (Beceived 13th November, 2.30 p.m.)' t LONDON, 12th November. ' in the House of Commons Air P Snowden, Chancellor of the Exchequer* replying to. a seri-.s of questions re' gardmg the eonvc^ion loan, said that the contract of placing thirty millions separately at 994 was not an ordinary underwriting transaction. Arraneements therefore could not be»made un\l\ I\f 7, f"\ lo"'iug the prospectus lest there should be a premature leakage of information. It was therefore not mentioned in the prospectus He was influenced in this matter by the difficulties of the present period, the imminence of maturity, and especially; the results of the Government issue of last year, when' the floating debt was increased by fifty millions, Having refZ Wf' present fi§ure*°f the float, mg debt he -could not run any risk Mr. Snowden repudiated the suggestion that a subsequent offer altered the terms of prospectus. Apart from the thirty millions, there had been no change m the normal Government methods regarding the terms of the issue. cve v h°Ped «>e price of money would declme, it. was necessary to prevent an increase of the floating debt. Sir H O'Neill (C): "Does not a heavy depreciation of Government stocks imply that the conversion offered an extremely fine investment at an unnecessary cost to the country?" Mr. Snowden: ('Undoubtedly it is a favourable investment. I do not attach importance to the fall of some Government stocks for a few days If you repeat the question in three weeks I shall- have "a different answer "