BRITISH WOOL TEXTILES EARN DOLLARS IN U.S.

Wanganui Chronicle, 10 November 1949, Page 5

BRITISH WOOL TEXTILES EARN DOLLARS IN U.S.

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reed 7.30 pm>British manufacturers are not unauly disturbed by certain American reports that the rise in wool prices since sterling devaluation threatens to bring British wool cloth exports to the United States to a standstill. Substantial shipments continue to be made from the United Kingdom, ano the chief exporting firms still have ’arge American orders on hand. The recent rise in the cost of wool is causing manufacturers to revise their quotations for future business, but price advances are understood to j be relatively small and do not represent an obstacle to business. British wool textiles manuftactured from Dominions wool are among the foremost of Britain's dollar earners. They represent nearly 21 per cent, or all Britain's exports of manufactured goods to the North American Continent as a whole, and about 121 per cent, of manufactured goods which Britain sends to the United States. Today some British wool textile firms are sending more than 30 percent. of their exports to dollar markets, and the industry as a whole is sending more than 25 per cent, of Its wool cloth exports to North America. _ , Much of this goes to Canada, for the United Kingdom supplies about 40 per cent, of Canada’s consumption of wool cloth and more than 80 per cent, of her import requirements of wool textiles. There is also, however, an important market for British wool cloth in the United States, specially in superior quality worsteds and garoadines, in which Britain sets the standard for the world. , It was reported this week that more than 250 British firms are exporting wool textiles to the United States on a substantial scale, in add - tion to a large number operating on a smaller scale. The numbers exporting to the Canadian market are even larger. In the proportion of its exports sent to America the wool textile industry compares very favourably with the other chief exporting industries. The proportion of all United Kingdom manufactured goods exports going to the United States and Canada is 6.9 per cent., but the proportion of wool cloth exports going to that market is 26 per cent., or nearly four times the average for ail other trades. In the case of the American market alone the proportion of all United Kingdom manufactured goods exports going to the United States is 2.3 per cent., but the proportion of wool cloth exports going there is 7.1 per cent.—Special Correspondent.