Washington, June 13.
Officials in Washington estimate that Japans gold resources have shrunk to less than $100,000,000, but the fact that Japan continues to pay for goods in gold puzzles them.
Officials here estimate Japanese gold to be less than 5100. 000,000 despite the fact that the Bank of Japan continues to list its reserves at $164,000,000, a figure that has remained unchanged on Japan's books since December 1938.
During 1939 Japan paid the United States $200,000,000 for goods bought in mis country and paid largely in gold. Japan shipped to America in 1689 $166,000,000 in gold and a further $55,000,000 in the first three months of 1940.
American officials, who long have predicted that Japan was rapidly exhausting her gold Supplies, are puzzled by the amount of gold Japan continues to ship. One explanation put forward is that long ago Japan established a secret hoard of gold against the contingency of a war with Russia and that she is now dipping into this reserve to foot the bill for the war in China, now nearly three years old.
estimated here that Japan's production of gold is not more than $62,000,000 a year and that that section of her foreign trade which produces foreign exchange has shown an adverse balance for some time.—Reuter,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.