EMPIRE TRADE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 15 June 1932, Page 2

EMPIRE TRADE

HIGH HOPES FROM OTTAWA THE POLICY OF CANADA INVESTIGATION BY PROFESSOR According to Professor J. T. Culliton, Professor of Economics at McGill University, Montreal, high hopes are being entertained in Canada for definite good lesults from the Ottawa Conference. Professor Culliton, who arrived in Auckland by the Aorangi from Vancouver, is engaged on research work on national markets, and especially agricultural credit, on behalf of his university. He expects to spend about a fortnight in New Zealand, and to visit also Australia and South Africa before going to London, where lie will spend next winter continuing his investigations. As far as Canada is concerned, a strong effort is going to be made to divert its trade to the Empire as far as possible, said Professor Culliton. However, Canada was confronted by difficulties, because it had established such industries as steel, textiles and boots and shoes, and it was a question how far these should be sacrificed. These were products that Britain would expect to market in Canada.

Speaking of the history of the New Zealand and Canadian trade treaty, Professor Culliton said the present Conservative Government in Canada went into power on a platform which included cancellation of the Australian and New Zealand treaties with regard to the importation of butter, in order to aid the Canadian dairy industrv. They discovered, however, that after the cancellation of the treaty the price of butter did not go up, and things were not any better than they were before. The latest treaty was an expression of goodwill paving the way fair the accomplishment of greater things at Ottawa. Professor Culliton is of opinion that at the Ottawa Conference Canada will try to cut down its imports from the United States and make every effort to obtain as much of these goods as possible within the Empire. Western Canada is confident of obtaining some* kind of arrangement that will provide an established market for its agricultural products. At the present time Canada is sharing fully in the present world-wide depression, but a good season for primary produce, combined with a 20 per cent, advance in values, would bring about a marked recovery. The Canadian wheat pool, which has functioned successfully for the past five years, is at present in a stage of transition. It is in debt to the Provincial and Federal Governments, and to the banks, but it is expected that it will pull through and carry out useful work in the future.

Professor Culliton expects to spend some days in Auckland before going to Wellington, and to work in conjunction with university authorities and Government departments. He is looking forward to association with the New Zealand University Colleges which, he says, are held in high regard in Canada.