RMERLY, the Annual Report on the Trade of China, containing reviews of trade at the various ports and information regarding the staple import and export commodities was issued to] the public in June or later only owing to the unavoidable delay in receipt of information from the many ports.
In order that the} public might be in possession of earlier information on the general features of China's trade it has been decided to issue an Introductory Survey in advance of the full report, but in order to maintain the original format of Vol. I of the Annual Report and Returns this Introductory Survey will be re-embodied in the full report on its presentation later.
'The annual figures for the total trade of China were given out on January 22 in the December Monthly Returns, and the following of them up by the advance presentation of the mai features of China' trade in the new: form will, it is hoped, be appri 'The Survey commences with a ro-view. of the International. politicoeconorle situation. In 1935." During the year, apart from purely economic affairs which engaged alike the me terest' of financiers, economists, experts, and pseudo-experts, world al tention. was mainly focused, in rope, on the Italo-Abyssinian con= Het; tu the western hemisphere, on the United" States Government': progress towards recovery and the Ananelal operations of her Treasury: and in the Far East, on the econo-mie crisis in China and the potiey of Japan towards her near neighbour, Events in Burope during the early part of the year—the return of the Saar to Germany following the plebis~ cite conducted under the auspices of the League of Nations, the Franco-Mahan and" Franco-Austrain " rope brochements, and the Anglo-German Naval Agroement—augured well for the solution of outstanding European dimeulties "and for the pursuit of world peace. Early optimism, how= ever, received a shock on the agitravation of the Ttalo-Abyssinian dis-
Events leading up to, the impos! tion of sanctions on Italy by" the League of Nations; the struggle towards recovery by the members of the Sterling Bice, the Gold Bloc, and the United States of America," and the hindrances to a revival of trade caused by" the Involved exchani Situation are. dealt with In It Is concluded that Chin: huaving been forced to adopt a man: aged currency, should, In the event that stabilization becomes a. reality, be in-a better position to adapt exchange to new parties than she might otherwise have been,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.