GERMANY.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 12 June 1923, Page 7

GERMANY.

« : NO HOPE OF STABILISING THE MARK. 1 BY CARLE—PRESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT Received June 12, 11.35 a.m. LONDON, June 11. The Times' Berlin correspondent says that the Reichstag debate on food prices and wages ended inconclusively, the Socialists and Communists illustrating how the standard of living had been lowered owing to the failure to adapt wages to prices. They alleged that the German worker works five hours for a pound of margarine, the British worker 20 minutes for a pound of meat, with a similar comparison in regard to other commodities. • | Herr Becker, Minister for Economic ; Affairs, held out no hope of further attempt to stabilise the mark so long as . there is an unfavourable trade balance, ' which is computed at £100,000,000. ! The problem was also discussed by the Reichstag and the enquiry committee. Both revealed that industry conducts its business with gold marks while paying wages and taxes in depreciated paper. This explains why German labour is restless and the State finances are in hopeless disorder. — Times.