SIR 0. NIEMEYER

Hokitika Guardian, 26 September 1930, Page 3

SIR 0. NIEMEYER

if V-;; ' ! V, 'LEAVES NEW ZEALAND

| v p'ePORT HELD OVER-

\By Telegraph—Per Pres« Association.) ( 1 ■ ; V VV; {,! v};WELLINGTON, September 25. Sir Otto Niemeyer and Dr Kershaw are booked to leave by the Maunganul for Sydney this afternoon. ’ ” Interviewed, Sir Otto Niemeyer said ’ tbat‘ lie had not reached any final opinion ori the matters that he was specially invited by the New Zealand Government to advise upon, and he dits jhtfjjt propose to present any report to ‘■thi Government at the present 'staged \He would probably wait till his return to London before preparing ; ; ; his which would be forwarded 0 hi-due, course., He said that he had very much enjoyed his stay in New Zealand. Through the courtesy of the Government, lie had been able to see something both of the productive areas and natural beauties of the country, and lie.|ook away very happy impresImiipUJiis stay. He added that he Hancß’KisG. associates were deeply appre-jdatiVe-Tf the courtesy and hospitality i ye'cieived, not only from the Govemment, but fronl all sections of the ■eainmlWlity-vvith whom they had come into ’bontaet.'

■ ‘‘Xt' rnay ■Seerti odd that any repre- ■ sensitive of the Bank of England should visit New' Zealand,” said Sii Otto Niemeyer in his last and only address in the country, given yesterday at Wellington, “but is it not perhaps symptomatic? Is it not a symbol of the need which we feel for closer relations and more accurate coming more apparent that eveiy eoris'ijkrable financial and economic proliiebi -is-less;' and .less,a national problem and more and more an international problem. Every war tends to ||jecome /i world war, and even .those who remain neutral do not escape from its economic effects. Such a sprq;blem As, uneqiployn;eiity. ? \Vhieh used i to;' he; a.:Jocql mutter,; is-.rapijlyj boccijrnii'fg aii-' international -matter affgqting .-’.practically -, allcountries., at sapie time, and possibly only curable in the end by international agreement and international action. Over-production tsHiof?- fi. ldeahqirbbleTfi ;' it ts.fjt-.ph< nom.’.’appears M*allbpS'rts',Vlof world '.and in fall; branches7of. ijiroluction. World pblitics tre’ beef Ming nore and more international, worlu inance is becoming more and more inctematitmal, and world trade and industry are becoming more and more international. New Zealand cannot ..iiiterests;.'stand; aside from or-clb&e'-her eyes 'to international happenings. They affect her intimately and domestically. You have only to look at the present nrice^ibf^wool-'and-Mf .-agricultural* produce to see how closely the fortunes •uh^New. £eajand are bound U|>...)l'.ith v events at the other end of the world. “I think I need make no further ■excuse for dwelling 0n..tw0., great, in-. ”'tbrhatip,!nalp vinany ■ThS Ts ''JlihAgrbwitigAcooperation. between the central banks of the world, and the second is the growing political co-operation which centres jn , } the League of You must disa| central or reserve |froi| an ordinary trading bank. A' re-. bank;such as exists at Home in .the! Bahk of England, or in America in the federal reserve system, or in South Africa in the South African Reserve Bank, or in various countries of EUr'ope, is hot mainly or normally a bank;.which deals with the ordinary commercial banking business of a country. It is rather a bank wliicn holds the ultimate reserves of the 'country,’ including tlie cash reserves'? of other batiks, and whose : ge.nei'nl mis-' 3ion may be described as that oi endeavouring to maintain the parity of the'inafional exchange. .With the groat, currently' _ disturbances wliicb'.. . have--arjsen out of tlie war,j disturbances, which deprived of any value - at, all the currencies of Germany, -and. Ceh[fral Europe, and- redjuced “.the value of French and-Italian currencies, to about one-fifth, the' problems facing the central banks obviously became inqdi'more difficult. There has arisen a perception of the fact that the central banks too must have an interna'tfoival“outlook. It. is not possible for them to carry out tlieir functions .! completely. '-Without understanding and : cooperation with the corresponding 'central banks of other political units.

THE EXCHANGE PROBLEM. , . “If you. reflect on how greatly the exchange problem depends on the level of prices in the important- country which buys your exports,, you will see at once how closely the functioning of one central hank depends on "6fie r ipolicyrbeing pursued -by another., If you take, again, the question of fcffe stability of the value of gold in relation tdv commodity prices, a most ipiportarit'world problem, it is obvious tliat (unless , there is a. measure of agreement" between the central banks as to the amount of gold they respectively think it necessary to hold, there will be a scramble for what gold as, available, and consequently a growing. danger as the price of gold goes up of commodity prices falling, to the of all parties. ■ Cjo-ope^'fifibn 1 between > : ‘the • central', banks, a slow and difficult process; lias been making steady progress in the last five or six years, and now per-