BRITISH TRADE

Wanganui Herald, Volume L, Issue 14743, 23 October 1915, Page 6

BRITISH TRADE

STRIKING IMPROVEMENT. With the ’issue of the .Board of Trade Returns for last month, figures are now available for the first month of the second 'year of war, and it is possible to compare Uie state of affairs at the time of the oiuhreak of hostilities with what have become normal war conditions. Bril ish imports for the month of August reached a total of .£69,496,695, an increase /of .£27,153,988, on .August 1914, and of >£13,520,991 on August 1913. Exports, on the other hand, arc now ,£32,438,835, iui increase of >£8,227,584 ou August 1914, but a decrease of .£11,(571,874 ou August 1913. These figures serve at once to focus attention ou the problem of the foreign exchanges, which is demanding the care, ful attention' of'the Government, and which has led to 5 the appointment of the Financial Mission to America. The figures are a clear index to the solid state of British trade. The percentages show* the huge improvement that lias taken place since.last August, In that month the commercial'world. .was in such a state of bewilderment' that- the. weirder is, not that’British overseas'] trade fell off by over thirty million pounds, but that it did not drop by a much larger amount. ; SUCCESS OF ‘‘BUSINESS AS USUAL.” Soon, however, with the success of the ‘■'business as usual” campaign. ■ commercial and industrial men settled down. to the new conditions, find the result is graphically shown in the returns for last month. Total imports have increased by 61.1 per bent, compared with, August 1914, and the detailed figures are almost more startling. Imports in the food classes arc up by 50 per cent., in the. raw materia! classes by 46' 1 per cent., and in the manufactured goods classes' by no less than 125.4 per cent. The export figures are eoually.striking- The total has risen by 33.9 tier cent., and the three classes named, above have increased by 37 per cent., 54.3 per cent., and 27.1 per cent, respectively. So far we have advanced from the position in August a year ago, hut while this is in the .'highest, degree satisfactory, the difficulty of balancing a continuing in>crease in exports still remains to be faced.,