The Utah County Democrat. [volume] (Provo City, Utah) 1898-1909, 1898-08-31
RETURNS OF enlrieH TRADE
increased Export OF Machinery ana tn1
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increased Export OF Machinery ana In
creased Imports Of other Articles.
British trade returns for the elk
months ending June 80 show q slight
increase in the exports. principally in
machinery, but the imports continue
to have the same tendency to augment
the adverse balance already noticed at
the end of each previous month OF the
present year. The excess OK imports
over exports for the last siS months
amounts to S405.756,25O, being over
Sl00.000oO0 greater than in 1897, and
more than S1l400O0O0 over 1896. The
steady and continuous decline in Brit
ish trade appears to be attracting a
good deal Of attention from foreign
governments among others the Swe-
dish. which has caused a special re-
port to be drawn up on the subject
This report, comparing the production
Of iron ore in England from 1871 to
1895 with that in Germany and the
United States, shows the English out
put to have gone down from i6.0S7 600
tons to 12,249,O00, while the German
output has more than doubled, and that
OF this country has risen from yearly
average of 4,532, 600 to one of 14,2sS 900
tons. The production Of ore for the
same period in Spain increased nine
fold. The production Of pig iron in
England as compared with that pro-
du,ed al over the world has sunk
from 4G.3 to 27.5 per cent and that of
this country has risen from i6.1 to 800
per cent. In the output OF coal Eng
land still has the Iced in the worlds
production, but is gradually losing II,
her proportion having fallen from AZ
70 "a per cent, while that of Germany
has risen slightly from II to 10 per
cent. but that OF this country from II
TO 30. OF the general trade of the
four greatest trading countries, Ger
many, France, Great Britain and the
United States, the first and last named
have increased each 10 per cent, that
Of France has steadily declined and
that Of England has increased only 2.5
per cent. The state of things descrip-
ed in the Swedish report appears to be
causing something Of panic in com
mercial circles in England, and more
attention is being given to the growing
competition of this country. The fear
that Germany was going TO prove the
successful rival OF England in the
worlds trade is giving place to
greater fear Of the unrivaled power
Of production of this country, and Of
its aingularly advantageous position in
respect to the most th'ckly populated
section Of the earth, western Europe
and eastern Asia. The startling rev.
Citations OF the trade statistics of this
country for the last year have opened
wide tho eyes of those in England who
have hitherto regarded Germany as the
most dangerous competitor, and the
danger IS recognized to be the more
serious because the rivalry of Germany
was in price only at the expense OF
quality, while that OF this country ex-
tends to both price and quality. Sure
ly a greater than Germany is here. says
one of the English financial organs,
commenting upon the wonderful show
ing of American trade statistics for the
last fiscal Period, and ii asks In all
seriousness il the moment can really be
at hand when England will cease to be
the shopkeeplng nation Of the world
and will have to take off its hat in
farewell to its former customers and
retire from business.-EX.