LEAVE THE EXCHANGE.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 13168, 29 January 1936, Page 4

LEAVE THE EXCHANGE.

PROF. COPELAND S ADVICE. WOULD R ETARD INTER NA L RECOVERY. Electric Telegraph—Pn-ss Association. CHRISTCHURCH. Last. Night “An attempt to lower the rate of exchange in New Zealand would be contrary to the experience or all other countries and inconsistent with the fundamental policy necessary to promote internal recovery.’’ That opinion, based on the experience of Australia. Great Britain and ether countries, va s expressed to-day by Professor D. B. Copland. Dean of the Faculty of Commerce at the University of Melbourne who has been economic adviser to the Governments of New Zealand and Australia Professor Copland .’aid that internal expansion and increase in imports must in the absence of an improvement in export price*. im|>ose some strain on the balance oi payments. New Zealand was moving towards «i position in which it would face this problem and the greater the recovery in a country the more obvious the phenomenon became. It was this fundamental problem,—or reconciling ncovery witli a level of the imports that a country could afford—that made currency stabilisation difficult. “There ha* been some credit expansion in New Zealand and there will probably be more in th«- next two years a-s the country moves towards complete recovery. In those circumstances imports will i»icrea>e and New Zealand will have the same experience as Great Britan. Australia and other countries that have by their internal policy aeh eved a substantial measiiic ol recovery. The experience <*i .ill the-, is that there is no possibility or appreciating the currency, that <s of lowering the rate of exchange. There is not even a desire to do this/’ Professor Copland said. “A deliberate effort cn the part of New’ Zealand to lower the rate of exchange would be contrary to the experience of all other countries and inconsistent with tlie fundamental policy required to promote internal recovery,’’ he said. “Jt i- unfortunate that there has been >0 much political discussion ol tin exchange rate in New Zealand and for this the business world cannot altogether escape responsibility .* 7