The Sun.
London, England, 1846-12-19 00:00:00

FOREIGN AND COLONIAL COM-

- MERCE OF FRANCE IN THE YEAR 1845.
The French Customs' authorities have just published
a general statement of the foreign and colonial corn
merce of France during the year 1845. It is somewhat
remarkable that the publication of this statement should
have been delayed until the middle of December, 1846,
and does not speak much for the industry of the French
employes. We shall now proceed to give as brief and
compendious an analysis as
this huge volume :
possible of the details of

The 11 general commerce" of France, with her colo-
nies and with foreign countries, for the year 1845,
amounts to 2,427,000,000 fr. By the term general com-
merce we would be understood to mean every thing
which has been exported or imported, whether by land
or by sea, without regard to its destination, or to any
other matters of detail ;-special commerce including only
that which enters into the internal consumption of the
kingdom, and whatever has been exported of the actual
produce of the soil and manufactures of France. Of the
2,427,000,000 fr. above-mentioned, the imports are stated
at 1,240,000,000 fr., and the exports at 1,187,000,000 fr.;
and if we divide the fifteen years from 1831 to 1845 into
three periods of five years each, and compare the com-
mercial operations of the respective periods, we shall ar-
rive at some curious results. During the first period,
from 1831 to 1835 inclusive, the general course of
French commerce involved a total of 6,969,000,000 fr.,
for the second period,' from 1836 to 1840, a total of
9,339,000,000 fr.; during the third, from 1841 to 1845, a
total of 11,215,000,000 fr. Thus the third period, as com-
pared with the first, exhibits an increase of 61 per cent.;
and, as compared with the second, an increase of 20 per
cent. The returns for 1845 present, when compared with
those of 1844, an increase (on imports and exports united)
of 88,000,000 fr.; and compared with the average of the
five preceding years, an increase of 257,000,000 fr. The in-
crease has occurred chiefly in sea-going commerce. In 1845
the marine commerce amounted to 1,736,000,000 fr., while
that by land reached only 691,000,000 fr. Of the
1,736,000,000 fr. forming the total of the marine commerce,
the proportion of 808,000,000 fr. is set down as having en-
tered or departed under the French flag; but deducting from
thisthwe
hsuermeinof
the competition
ureporfefsoernetiignng those opera-
tions,hibited, the actual independent proportion flofagFsriasncperois-
only 524,000,000 fr. against 928,000,000 fr. for which
foreign flags must get credit. Let us now set down, in
the order of the importance of their relations to France
in this respect, the names of the principal countries with
which the French hold commercial intercourse. In the
first list we shall consider imports and exports together,
and in this view the order of the respective nations is as
follows :-1, the United States ; 2, England ; 3, Bel-
gium ; 4, the Sardinian States ; 5, the States in-
cluded in the German League ; 6, Spain ; 7,
Algiers ; 8, Switzerland ; 9, Russia. If we take
only imports, the order of relative importance
changes, and runs thus :- 1, United States ; 2,
Belgium; 3, England; 4, the Sardinian States; 5, the
German League; 6, Russia ; 7, Turkey, 8, Spain; 9,
Switzerland. And the order again changes if we confine
our view to exportations-for instance:-1, England; 2,
the United States; 3, Algiers; 4, Spain; 5, the German
League; 6, Belgium; 7, Switzerland; 8, the Sardinian
States; 9, Guadeloupe. It appears from this that the
United States and Belgium occupy the first rank as im-
porting countries. The United States have sent to France
the value of 146,000,000 fr. of their produce, and Belgium
the value of 117,000,000 fr.; while France has sent to
the States no more than 96,000,000 fr. worth, and to Bel-
gium only_ 57,000,000 fr. It is necessary to remark here
that the United States are nearly the only country in the
world which produces in sufficient quantity the great
staple raw material which is indispensable to the opera-
tions of the manufacturers of France; and it is further
necessary to advert to the action of the restrictive tariffs
enforced against France by the United States since 1842,
for their late commercial relaxations are exclusively in
favour of English produce. About Belgium it is enough
to say that she produces like a great, and consumes
like a small, nation-a circumstance which, in the
opinion of many, must always detract from the advan-
tages of any treaty that the French may form with
her. Algiers has already arrived at the third rank
amongst the consumers of the produce of French in-
dustry ; but this is accounted for by the well-known
fact that the French themselves constitute the principal
consumers. A reduction of the army would probably
be immediately followed by a reduction in the ex-
ports of France to the colonies. It is well to remark,
however, that the English and other foreigners will
no longer have the advantage of suppl) ing Algeria with
most of its necessaries, and of occupying the market
there at the expense of French industry. This is put an
end to by law, and French producers and workmen will
henseforth enjoy benefits of which they were for along time
deprived. Coming now to the subject of " Special Com-
merce" we find the total under this head amounts to
856,000,000 fr. ; cottons and silks occupy the first rank,
being 108,000,000;r„ and 65,000,000 fr. respectively ;
wools at 50,000,000 fr.; oils at 36,000,000 fr. ; and under
the head of exports, which amount to 848,000,000 fr.,
silk tissues hold the first place, reaching 140,000,000 fr.
The export of cotton manufactures was 127,000,000 fr.
of wool manufactures 104,000,000 francs ; of wines
54,000,000 francs ; and of linens and hempen cloths
24,600,000 fr. These are the most interesting general
facts deducible from the bulky documents before us.