The San Francisco call., 1899-04-10
PHILIPPINES AS A MARKET
GROWTH OF SHIPMENTS FROM
THE UNITED STATES.
Considerable Gain Shown in the Traf-
ic With Cuba, Though the Bal
anoc Is Against This
Country.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

w WA0f11NGION, April y. - Acting
Secretary of War Meiklejohn gave out
for publication to-day some interesting
statistics regarding the trade of the
United States with - Island of Cuba.
Porto Rico and the Philippines. pre-
facing them by calling attention to the
fact that normal conditions of trade
have not yet been fully restored be-
tween the islands named. The returns
for February show an increase of i'm
ports from the islands in this country
amounting to 1874, 4OS and a correspond
ing increase of exports from the United
States to the islands of $693, ,269. as COM
pared with the same month a year ago
The trade of the United States with
the Philippines, it is said. begins to
show the natural growth due to the di-
rection of the attention of American
exporters to the archipelago. While
the exports from our ports to the Phil
ippine Islands for February of last
year amounted to only $1907, for the
same months this year tley are more
than ten times as much, being $19. .525
For the eight months ended with Feb
ruary 2S, 1898, they We're only $50, ,235
while for the corresponding period of
the present fiscal year they show a gain
of nearly 70 per cent. reaching Sill.
021. Our direct importations from
Manila for February We're $277,O33. a
gain of nearly so per cent over the
same month last year. NotWithstand-
ing the decline of imports into the
United States from the Philippines
during the months Of active warfare.
the imports for eight months preceding
~ ~ Z -
with 81, ,102, ,SS9 for a similar period the
year before.
Our trade with Porto Rico likewise
shows an excess of imports over eX-
ports to that island For the eight
months of the fiscal year the imports
from Porto Rico to the United States
gained 100000 in value over the former
year, being $5S7, ,SS4, against $525,SS4. OF
this gain more than one-half was in the
month of February. when the imports
of 1899 reached $124,61S, against SS9.1S6
for 1S9S
The trade balance between this coun-
try and Porto Rico is now in favor Of
our exporters, as for the same month
the exports were $267 619, or $170545 in
excess of those of 1898. For the eight
months of the fiscal year the exports
amounted to $1,326, ,596, a gain of $12.-
$50, developed regardless of the several
months when the ports of the island
were closed to our wares and mer-
chandise.
Trade with Cuba has been in the
past several times as large as our trade
with Porto Rico and the Philippines
combined, and now is already showing
wonderful gains over the older figures
A year ago in February, before the
war, we imported from the Island of
Cuba goods valued at s2.O59,7 ,729, while
for the same month of the current year
the figures were S2.307 $40. For the
period of July l, 1898, to February 2S.
1899, the total imports to United
States ports from Cuba were S9,17S. 77S.
against S6,419,02S for the like period a
year earlier. This increase of more
than two and three-ouarter millions
mainly occurred during the last several
months, when the crops were being
shipped.
The exports to Cuba have also pros
pered, those of January and February
showing an increase of over a million
dollars in value. For February, 1898.
the merchandise exported from this
country to Cuba was valued at s1.166.-
744, while for the same four weeks of
1899 the figures were s1,671.S46. The
aggregate worth of the exports from
the first of last July to the end of Feb
ruary is given at s1,142, 949, an increase
OF 80 per cent over the preceding year