M. Okamoto denied that speculation was responsible for the recent rises that brought raw silk up to almost $1 (U.S.) for a pound. In Japan the national economy programme, he said, has rigidly restricted the import of other textiles, causing a wider use of silk. Prices have gone up generally end silk has naturally been seeking the new, higher level, he explained. Silk is not excepted, he said, from the government's rigid control of speculation. With Japan's trade balance what it is, he made it plain, no effort is going to be spared to prevent price increases which might curtail American imports of Japanese silk, which constitute one of the most important sources of Japanese foreign exchange holdings.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.