Flexible Tariff Imposed on Exports: Measure to Protect Country's Currency Shanghai, Oct. 15.
FTER clys of conference, the Chinese Government yesterday acted to check the drain of silver from China, consequent upon the passage of President Roosevelt's Silver Purchase Act, by announcing a new Customs duty on silver exports effective from to-day.
The Government yesterday issued the following order:
In view of the undue rise of sneral commodity prices, the iver out of relation to the level of ational Government, in order to Safeguard China's economic interests and protect its currency, has fixed fury on exports of silver, effective October 15, a8 follows:
'On silver dollar 10 per cent, less 214 per cent tainting charges. pald, Ley 7H per cent, met 'On other' fo ims of silvers 10 per cent. (in Mew of per cent)
Im addition, an exports of equal to' the deficiency, if teat arity of London sil rand a rate Central Bank of China, after making allowance for the export di Dr. H. H, Kung, Minister of Finance, in a statement, stressed the idea of stabilization and said that the Government had decided against an embargo and preferred a flexible duty that would restrain the exports of silver within the actual limits required by the balance of payments.
In commenting upon the order, ac~ cording to the Kuo Min News Agency, of silver creating great alarm. Silver Dr. Kung stated that there to expect that the forces that have been stimulating the price of silver abroad will soon cease operate, Therefore the Government, out of regard for the economic welfare of the people who live in China, had taken this measure as a necessary step to safeguard China's currency from a potentially dangerous rain of the country's monetary reserves, and to place a check upon the operation of the harsh deflationary forces which have been reflected in falling internal prices.
The measure had been determined upon, said Dr. Kung, after most care-{ul consideration of various proposals for meeting the emergency, and after {ull consultation with Teaders Dusiness and finance. Among these proposals, an embargo has most frequently been suggested. The Government considered, however, that an embargo should not be imposed, and preferred a flexible duty that' wil) Festrain exports of silver within the limits actually required by the balance of payments, Dr. Kung ex. pressed asstirance that the measure] Would allay the misgivings that have lately disturbed the markets and by stabilizing the situation would permit eaitimate business to proceed with renewed confidence.
Dr. Kung, when asked concerning rumours about the possibility of reduction of the silver content of the Aollar, stated that this subject had never been mentioned at any of the conferences and that be would not even consider such a proposal
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.