GERMANY AND SUPPLIES FROM THE BALKANS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 10 January 1940, Page 4

GERMANY AND SUPPLIES FROM THE BALKANS

DURING the past year or two Germany has developed her trade with South-eastern Europe to a high degree and in the opinion of the authority quoted in the above article it does not seem probable that there is much room for further expansion and there might well be a contraction. Further, the fact that many raw materials previously imported by Germany from overseas are no longer available, will hit Germany’s exporting industries which will not be able to supply what these southeastern countries need. The possibility of Germany obtaining goods on credit are not great and Russia, as well as neutrals, will be reluctant to go far in this respect. It is pointed out that one important method of preventing goods from reaching Germany is to provide a market for products which otherwise would be sold to Germany and to furnish supplies of coal and similar things which otherwise these countries would have to draw from Germany. Every ton of Rumanian oil that Britain can buy means one ton of oil less which is physically available for export to Germany. Expansion of export trade, above all with European neutral countries, is in the forefront of Britain’s programme, as outlined by Mr Neville Chamberlain in his speech at the Mansion House this morning. After giving

a warning against easy optimism or under-estimation of Germany’s capabilities, the authority quoted above concludes by stressing that on its economic side, the main strategy of the war consists in drawing the net so closely about Germany that what is within cannot get out and what is without cannot get in.

Cable messages yesterday reported that Rumania, in company with Yugoslavia, has deliberately held up supplies to Germany on the ground that the goods promised in exchange “are not arriving on schedule.”