CREDIT SHAKEN

Southland Times, Issue 19501, 16 March 1925, Page 7

CREDIT SHAKEN

RUSSIA’S POSITION

PEASANTS IN DIRE POVERTY.

(By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright). (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.)

LONDON, March 13.

Apropos of reports that are current in the Baltic Exchange that Russia is negotiating to buy Australian' wheat, interest attaches to the Daily Telegraph’s statement of a sharp shrinkage in the trading turnover menacing the whole of Russia’s credit.

This is due to the exhaustion of the buying capacity of the peasants, who no longer have corn or other products to exchange for goods. The Soviet Co-operative Societies and the State trading organisations are badly hit, as during the autumn they bought largely on credit, chiefly against bills.

According to one Russian paper, 180,000 bills valued at 475,000,000 roubles were protected to th? middle of December, and even a greater number in January, the chairman of the Soviet State Bank saying that only 33 per cent, of the co-operative bills had been paid. Probably in order to avoid discredit abroad the Soviet will arrange assistance.