TRADE WITH CANADA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21539, 11 January 1932, Page 6

TRADE WITH CANADA.

The joint announcement which has been issued from Honolulu by the Canadian Minister for Trade and Commerce, Mr H. H, Stevens, and the New Zealand Minister of Finance and Customs, Mr Downie Stewart, that a trade agreement has been reached, will be received with a great deal of satisfaction in both Dominions. The recent history of trade relations between Canada and New Zealand has been of a regrettable nature. The unfavour-, able development in it dates, in its more serious aspect, from the accession to office in Canada of the Conservative Government in August, 1930. Mr Bennett, who became Prime Minister, had pledged himself to afford protection to the dairy farmers, and proceeded to fulfil his promise by increasing the already high tariff on butter, the principal export from New Zealand to Canada. Thus commenced an unedifying tariff war which has materially affected the trade between the sister Dominions. The extent to which commerce suffered through the erection of tariff barriers by the respective Governments is vividly shown by statistics. For the nine months to the end of September, 1930, New Zealand exports to Canada were valued at £2,390,094. They dropped to £241,612 for the corresponding period in 1931, a decrease of £2,148,482. The imports into New Zealand from Canada declined from £2,956,647 to £1,006,305, a decrease of £1,950,342. For the quarterly period to September 30 last, in which the tariff restrictions were fully operative, the decline was relatively even more pronounced. Exports to Canada in the three months were valued at only £31,178, compared with £178,126 in the same period a year pievious, a decline of £146,948; while the imports from Canada fell from £1,033,587 to £275,838, a difference of £757,749. That ordinary governmental relations were strained was made clear in the communications respecting tariffs that were exchanged

by the Prime Ministers of Canada and New Zealand last year. These despatches almost amounted to mutual recriminations, politely veiled though they were in diplomatic terms. The success o£ the negotiations for the establishment of trading relations upon a new basis which is expected by the Ministers concerned to produce mutually profitable results will terminate an impasse which has been seriously prejudicial to trade and generally unfortunate. At no time has the promotion of Empire trade upon reciprocal terms been more desirable than it now is, and both the Canadian and New Zealand people have reason to feel relieved at the conclusion of a treaty which, if the expectations that are raised by the cable messages are realised, should operate to the benefit of commerce in both countries.