Programme, it is true, has been largely self-defeating, since it destroyed the monetary demand for the metal in China and other countries while it stimulated production to last year's record figure of over 270,000,000 ounces.
Now that the stimulus of abnormal prices has been withdrawn, one would expect a decline in production during the current year to the 1936 level of {250,000,000 ounces, particularly as lead spelter, which is jointly produced with silver, is again at depression levels Three-quarters of such output should find its way to the United States Treasury, while the balance would suffice for industry and Indian demand.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.