The American commodity barter plan Posed by Senator James F. Byrnes, Demo. from South Carolina, has received the approv of President Roosevelt and with such powerf it ought to commend li to the nations concerned. Byrnes proposes the exchange of American wheat and cotton for tin and rubber, and London. and Ai m being sounded on possibilities w other countries are also envisaged in It na; Commentary on world progress that after creating a complicated system of economies and world finance to regulate resources there should be a return to the tionship between nations—that the surplus products of one coun. air plus of another. In recent years here has been a developing tendency in barter arrangements but chiefly veen those countries whose currency resources are limited Within this group are included the "axis powers whose limi ect are wil ap preciated, tries have accepte:
ngcments. d to the American economic factors of considerable import-cived and its consummation may e so easy of attainment. T^ U States has plus wheat and cetic tion and the three countries, Britain and Belgium, control the world's rubber and in supplies. For some years the world price level for rubber and tin has been so low that astriction schemes have been introduced it oder to improve price levels by limiting pro t been applied to pro-eat in the United compensation has been be maintained r: ict the production of. unconsumn One is a ce-operative industrial and the other a government charge, and. two systems conflict except in aspect that productive capacity ar ahead of normal demand. In the scheme is the recognizable factor that n countries need wheat and cotton in to build up adequate supplies for the gencies which the rapidly deteriorating political situation demands, while the United States will be able to overcome her difficul! farming problems by disposing of surplus crops and, at t lime, build up resources of materials not produced in the United rubber, of which the War and ts state, 225,000 tons should be a reserve. barter standard o: e is 5,000,000 bales of cotton against 600,000 tons of rubber. The plan provides for pledges against resale on the world market unless prices surpass the barter values and, generally speaking, the arrangement is attractive provided business circles can be persuaded that political conditions demand such a scheme. In the meantime, as New York commodity circles report, it is better to wait for details, for while some of the democracies would appreciate this contribution to their reserves they are already deeply committed to other sources of supply which might result in serious consequences it they were suddenly disrupted.
"Al the same." said ave nothing to do w t been to a "re gain to be splendid isolation then all rig! in the "Sunday Express."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.