PRICE CONTROL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23807, 13 May 1939, Page 13

PRICE CONTROL

NEW ZEALAND'S PLAN VIEWS OF LONDON BANKERS MISGIVINGS EXPRESSED (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) LONDON, May 12. Banking circles feel that New Zealand's plan of price control should help to maintain the value of the currency, but some misgivings are expressed at the apparent absence of simultaneous wages control. It is pointed out that the wage index mounted from 895 to 1096 in three years, which is responsible for an appreciable part of the .rising costs. COMPENSATING FACTOR EFFORT TO STABILISE WAGES "AN INEVITABLE DIFFICULTY" (Per United Press Association) WELLINGTON, May 12. " If we control prices we are controlling the necessity for increasing wages," the Prime Minister (Mr Savage) said to-day when commenting on the cable message from London expressing misgiving on the part of banking circles at the apparent absence of wages control simultaneously with orice control. "Already we have suggested to those who are interested in wages conditions in New Zealand that they should 'go easy' on making demands, and when we are talking like that we want to see that machinery is provided so that prices are not raised against those whose wages are expected for the time being to remain somewhere about what they are. " There are a number of people in the community," Mr Savage said, " who have no reason to feel that the limit has been reached so far as wages are concerned, some whose demands for increases cannot lightly be turned aside. But, speaking generally, we have asked for stabilitv on the one hand from those who are controlling prices, and on the other from those who are making demands for higher wages. These sentiments can have only a temporary application while we -re dealin" with a difficult situation but a situation that was inevitable to anyone who did any serious thinking."