HIGH EXCHANGE RESULTS

Taranaki Daily News, 2 May 1933, Page 9

HIGH EXCHANGE RESULTS

COSTS TO THE COMMUNITY REPLY TO FINANCE MINISTER. DAMAGE TO DOMINION GOOPWILL. By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington, May 1. Replying to the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates on the exchange issue, Mr. Edwin Salmond, president of the .Importers’ Federation, states that the monetary and financial committee of the Ottawa Conference stressed the importance of stable exchange rates over as wide an area as possible, and the value of countries within the Empire maintaining stability between their exchange rates. The Minister, he said, had avoided all reference to the patent fact that the country’s juggling with the finance had been a factor in the depression now being experienced on the overseas dairy market, where the Government’s action had done enormous damage to the Dominion’s goodwill. Mr. Coates had accused the federation of a deliberate mis-statement when it contended that the unemployment figures had increased, but the April figures just published showed that there had been an increase.

When giving its estimate of £8,000,000 as the prospective loss to the Govern-, ment on the exchange rate the federation had taken into consideration the loss by acquiring excess funds under the Banks Indemnity Act, loss of Customs through the restricted imports, loss to local bodies on the debt service abroad, loss to individual firms and loss to the community through increased costs. In reply Mr. Coates had said that the funds taken over by the Government had so "far not exceeded the amount required to meet the Government’s ordinary interest requirements in London, b&t in his review of the Budgetary position unforeseen expenditure had included £470,000 for the purchase of exchange in excess of requirements for the year ended March .31. It was obvious that Mr. Coates had flatly contradicted himself.