U.S. Exporters Cannot Understand Import Restrictions

Northern Advocate, 12 May 1939, Page 5

U.S. Exporters Cannot Understand Import Restrictions

[Special to “Northern AdvOcate”l AUCKLAND, This Day. American exporters are taking a keen interest in New Zealand at the present time, according to Mr W. C. Flake, American Trade Commissioner at Sydney, who is returning to Australia in the Mariposa after a six months’ official visit to the United States.

He stated this morning that he wlas in Washington when the first'news of New Zealand’s import restrictions policy came through. “There was an immediate rush 'for information,” said Mr Flake. “The first reaction was that the Dominion Goverrfmtnt was merely putting into effect the machinery for restrictions, and that permits would be granted when applied for. In other words, it was thought that the Government was merely loading the gun. It took some of them some time to realise that the regulations were to be operative immediately—that the gun had not merely been loaded, but that the trigger had been pulled.” ’ The immediate application of the regulations had caused painful surprise in some quarters, said Mr Flake; The general opinion of New Zealand held in the United States wag that it was a prosperous country, and many people found it hard to reconcile the action taken with the reports that Wad reached the United States. ,’'W

Many did not realise or appreciate the Dominion’s need for preserving her overseas sterling funds. The question was now being asked how long the restrictions were to last. - -