COTTON GOODS

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 14, 16 July 1936, Page 4

COTTON GOODS

THE JAPANESE FACTOR

POSSIBLE COMPLICATIONS

(From "The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, June 24.

Commenting upon the suggestion by Mr. W. Nash, Minister of Marketing, that if Great Britain would conclude a reciprocal trade agreement, New Zealand would be willing to take all its cotton goods from Great Britain and not import any from Japan, the

"Manchester Guardian" says that a new factor may develop as regards Japan's trading relations with the British Dominions.

"New Zealand's suggestion," il is slated, "has come as something o£ a surprise to Lancashire interests, but, as Japan has recently obtained a larger share of the New Zealand market, although it has been contracting, Lancashire would no doubt welcome a plan for retaining all the available trade. The question arises, however, as to what Japan will do with its large output of cotton and rayon goods if further severe restrictions arc placed upon them in the various' British markets. Efforts are already being made, not without success, to increase Japanese shipments to Europe and to South America, and there are now few markets in which Japan has not established a foothold. It remains to be seen whether these new markets can be made to absorb enough cloth to compensate Japan for the loss of part of its trade with its older markets, but it seems possible that, if Japan was hard pressed, it might make conditions more, difficult for British goods in some markets where its competition has not yet become important." The "Manchester Guardian" also suggests that some Japanese * interests might be reluctant to accept Australia's intermediate tariff schedule as the basis (or lht> entry of Japanese goods in Australia. "The alternative to accepting this basis as the result of concluding a new trade agreement," it says, "would presumably be for Japan to declare a 'trade war'—such as it waged last year with Canada —against Australia, in the hope of securing more favourable terms. During the last three or four weeks the Japanese buyers' abstention from bidding at the wool sales in Australia, and their increased activity at the sales in South Africa, have indicated a disposition to adopt unfriendly rather than friendly means of obtaining better terms from Australia. It has been reported that the Japanese- Government may take the same view as the wool-users, and bring the Trade Safeguarding Act into operation against Australian goods."