Sir Harry McGowan's brief remans on landing here and the short summary of Sir Howard Kelly's address to a London audience of British merchants [with interests in the Far East have opportunely drawn attention to the quickening of the long-established Sino-British trading relationship. It is now over three hundred years since the first British "ship, the Unicorn, anchored at a Chinese The Canton trade of the Company rapidly developed in the 18th Century. That Company's, records: show that, by 1817, the total trade between the two countries was reckoned at $23,463,401. In 1932 the figure was eight times that amount and, in the peak year of 1929, it nearly reached, $200 million. There is a wealth of tradition and experience behind the British merchant trading in China and the Chinese merchant either importing British goods or exporting China's products to Great Britain. The experience comprises periods of mi sun standing and friction as well in the more distant middle 19th Century, actual hostilities, day Great Britain is Chi
products, and other articles largest market, for eggs and o#g {which this country can export to Great Britain in considerable quantity are straw hats, anti-many, groundnut oil, rugs and tea, the last named "being unfortunately but a shadow of its former self in the British imports from China, China takes from cotton piece-goods, 'h, machinery, metals—to nly few of the leading British imports into this country. Keen competition is naturally a feature of the trading conditions obtaining here as elsewhere, It is accentuated by the hazards of the uncertain exchanges. The prevailing world depression which has had its influence on China has further sharpened it, The findings of the Economic Mission showed that more than one British industry has to consider carefully "the te~ organisation of its methods of production and marketing in order to maintain its position.
There is no reason to believe that British industry ig lacking in the qualities calculated to vindicate its claim to a share of the Far Eastern trade. The days have gone when rivals were few and able to put up but a moderate challenge. The remarkable industrial progress made by Japan who can command the special advantages accruing from her geographical position has been the chief feature of China's foreign trade reports in recent years. Her competitors lean hardly expect to deny to Japan the place which she has held since 1910, although last year, owing to Sino-Japanese differences, she, had to be content with running second to the United States of America, Great Britain securing the third place. as has been the consistent rule since 1920. This does not take into account the trade with Hongkong. Nevertheless Great Britain can rely on the ability lof her manufacturing industries to compete with no little success for a share of the China market, now as in the past. At the last annual meeting of the British Chamber of Commerce here, on April 6, 1933, Mr. Louis Beale, H.B.M's Commercial Counsellor, pointed out that "Of the total manufactured goods coming into this country Great Britain this year enjoyed Bo Hetp than 24 per cent, a very big increase on the previous In. fact, while in. 1931 had rather more than 8 percent. of the total import trade of China, in 1932 our share was 11h per cent, an increase of 40 per cent.
And Mr. Beale added that Great Britain supplied China with more than double the value of manufactured goods supplied by the United States of America. It would be folly to underestimate the obstacles confronting certain British industries here. Only a few days ago it was reported that once again the employers Jand operatives of the Lancashire cotton industry had failed to reach an agreement on the plans to cheapen production with the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.