MUST BE CURBED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 24 April 1934, Page 8

MUST BE CURBED

AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTS AIR BRUCE’S CHANGED VIEW -Mr S. " Bruce. Australian High Gblnniissioner in London, recently reviewed the problems confronting Australia in the marketing of primary products overseas, and in a rrencral _ way proffered advice as to the attitude which should be adopted by the Commonwealth to the policy of restriction in relation to production and .export, at a luncheon given in his honour by (he Melbourne Chamber of Commerce. Mr Bruce said lie appreciated the references. that had .been made to his efforts on behalf’of the. Commonwealth, but at the .present-time he was more cbheoiTied- with, the future than witll 'anything he had been engaged upon in ’ I ho : past; .'reports the Melbourne i'Agei” Now that we had effected the conversion of high interest-hearing securities overseas, which we had had • ah option upon, lie' had put the coping stone on the great national effort that we had made to rehabilitate ourselves. There 'was no longer any need to waste time thinking whether we were wetting n fair deal or not. We were getting a fair 'deal. We should concentrate our efforts to solving the problems immediately facing us. To-day the economic question, the question of markets, was overwhelming. Tie bad bad the opportunity of attending meetings of the .world's wheat committee, at which one could , get a'better appreciation of the world attitude on the question of marketing than it was possible to get at any other place, and the conclusion be bad come to was that iu Australia wo bad to recognise the new conditions which ’bad arisen overseas, and adapt ourselves to meet them. The ideal of Australia was obvious. Having a great continent and almost unlimited means of production, the course we would like to pursue would be to go forward and produce to the maximum of our efficiency; to raise the standard of production, and bring about continuity of supplies so that we could fight our way into the markets of every country in the world. That was the idea, but it was not the real at the present moment. He had never been a subscribed to the ideal of restriction of production, but of the sixty-four

nations represent at, the Economic Conference the only country which raised its voice in protest against the policy of restriction was Australia, and she did not get support from one other country. We had now to recognise where we stood, and what was the temper of the world at the present time.

WORLD ATTITUDE

The temper of the world towards Australia, Air Bruce concluded, was that we could not go on producing to an unlimited extent, because if we did we would find the markets of the world shut against us. It was a tragic policy, and one fraught with almost incalculable danger. The commodities in which Australia, was particularly interested were wheat and butter. Whereas in 1927 France, Italy, and Germany were importers of wheat to the extent of nearly 2,000,000 bushels, in 1932 t hoy were not importers, Imt were exporting wheat to the world's markets. Action of that sort had its natural reaction. The price of wheal in those countries had gone up to fantastic heights. In 1933 the price of wheat in Great Britain was 40 cents; in France, 120 cents; in Germany. about 125 cents. In Switzerland (lie international price of wheat was about 12s 6d a. bushel. As the price went up those nations were faced with two things—reducing the standard of living for their people, or so to increase costs of production that they would become uncompetitive in the markets of the world. With regard to butter, a similar course had been followed, and there was now only one great market for surplus butter. That was the British market, which was taking between 85 and 90 per cent, of the whole surplus butter of the world. We could go on shutting our eyes to tiie situation, increasing our y reduction and ignoring the rest of the world, hut the result would he to bring almost intolerable suffering for the people of our riwn country. The internal market would become disorganised, and we would soon he in serious trouble. It might, be said that no one would go to the extreme of shutting out our products, but that would he done. The nations had all gone mad. In Belgium nothing was allowed in without a licence, and they were determined to avoid buying from any country with which they had an adverse trade balance. The sooner we woke up to this position the better it would be.

WHEAT AND BUTTER QUOTAS

Air Bruce went oil to say that he believed we could get over the period immediately before us with reasonable satisfaction to ourselves, but lie hoped that eventually we might got hack' to our old ideal of expanding and building up this great country. At present wool and gold were in a very satisfactory position, and there was no need to worry about them. With regard to wheat, however, Australia had to make a decision on the question of falling in with a general scheme of limiting export. He seriously believed that 1 if Australia had stood out from the present agreement, which covered a period up to 31st July, we would have found a prohibition against Australia in almost every other country. He thought it was better for Australia to remain in the agreement than to allow other countries to fix wheat export quotas for Australia. With regard to butter, we had to decide whether we were to have a hectic fight under the quota system or accept a limit on butter to be sent to the British market. If we took' the latter course he thought we could.get a figure which would he quite satisfactory to Australia. With lamb the same position prevailed. The quota under the Ottawa Agreement had got our mutton and lamb oncitho British market on perfectly satisfactory conditions. hut if, after July-,' Australia and New Zealand flooded the British market the result would be that Britain would he entitled to impose more restrictions, and our local market would be disorganised. He said, without hesitation. that, broadly speaking, the world's markets were shut to us beyond a restrictive quantity. After referring to Britain's efforts to revive her own agriculture. AH Bruce said that Britain could not go too far with limits oil the Dominions which were her debtors, blit other countries also wore great debtors to Britain. He believed that if we took counsel and adopted a wise course it would be possible to maintain our export trade in respect of practically eVerv commodity. Tie thought that after two or three years there would he an improvement in the markets of Britain and of the whole world. In the meantime, it seemed to him. Australia’s task, which would be extremely difficult, would he to improve her efficiency, improve the standard of her export's, and work out. schemes for continuity of supply to her customers. He thought Australia, was far more advantageously placed at the present\ime than any-other country‘in the world, and he did not; think the future was as dark as some people imagined. ITe was prepared to co-operate with tlie whole of 'the people in trying to ensure that a wise course was followed, so that when better times came ’wo would he a hotter equipped and more efficient-people than we had ever been in the past.