The times., 1899-10-15
FOREIGN TRADE FIGURES.
Exports and Imports Ex
pandInE Rapidly.

pandfnG Rapidly.
The Bureau of Statistics Of the Treasury
Department has Issued a summary OF the
exports and imports of the country for the
month of September and for the first nine
months Of the year. The report contains
the total figures of both exports and i'm
ports. and when taken in connection with
the statistics on the American foreign
trade published in The Times yesterday.
1t gives very complete analysis OF the
present condition OF this most important
branch OF the country's business. The fig-
ures show the largest foreign trade Amer
lea ever had by many millions OF dollars.
and they also show that although imports
are growing rapidly. the exports are stfii
much larger, thus making the trade bal
ance In Americas favor enormous.
ihe complete statistics for September are
nrst given The total imports were S7a.-
1885. OF which S3s. .425 SCI were dutiahe.
as against total of s4s 45S. .SS7. OF whicn
SZS.IS1,s54 were dutiable. in September.
1898 The exports for September were
lle.437 ,ss5. as against $50. .s45 s27 in the
year previous
The excess OF exports over imports for
the month was s5s. .s7s. sec, or more than IS
per cent. This excess Is not quite so large
as that OF September. 1888. for the reason
that the prosperity OF the country has in
dueed extraordinarily heavy imports this
year, but the difference is very small The
excess Of exports In September, 1898, was
S42, ,1S9. $50.
The figures fer the first nine montns of
the calendar year are equally gratifying.
The total imports were s5S5. .736, ,106. OF
which 1925. .s19, 1877 were dutiable. against
SAFE. .37S, ,955 Of which s270. 7S4. .293 were du-
table, in 1898. The increase In imports
was thus SlI0s3S7. 15i. The exports for the
nine months were $903, ,02S. sos, as against
Ss69, IA last year, an increase OF $2s,-
$50, ,7S7
The excess OF exports over imports. or
the trade balance in Americas
favor for the period, was s317,-
,iO2, or nearly third of a billion dol
lars The excess of exports IN the same
period Of 1898 was somewhat larger. s3ss.-
S99,1ss. The total foreign trade OF the
country for the nine months represented
by the SUM of its exports and imports was
81. ass, ,764,614.
Supplemental figures are given in the re-
port showing the totals of exports and i'm
ports for the twelve months ending with
September 30 The imports were s74a.-
81 99S, and the exports 81, 2s9. .2s6. $50. The
trade balance in Americas favor was S543.-
97o.g31, OF over half billion dollars
Total figures for all the years since 1894
show that the exports OF the country have
grown steadily year by year. In the year
ending September 80, 1888, the exports
were $500, All. AS. In the year 1897 the ex-
ports first reached the billion mark
sl,OS6.O13,539. In the next year the total
exports were 81, ,222, 74S9 947. An increase OF
about $67, 100000 is shown from these fig-
ures to that OF the present year, s.. .2S9,-
296, $50
most interesting commentary en- the e
figures is found in the insignificant amount
of gold tnat America has obtained from
the remainder OF the world, as pay for her
stupendous trade balance AS has beea
seen, the trade balance In favor OF America
for the nine months ending September so.
or the actual excess of value of the coun-
try's exports over its imports, was $3I7.-.
2s2. 1852. During this entire period the ex--
cess of gold imports, or the amount of goli
gained by this country, was only $500 S63,
less than a million dollars or prae etically
nothing. The country is apparently grow
ing richer at the rate of much more than
million dollars day, but in the eatire
nine months not one days excess of ex-
ports over imports was paid for IN gold by
the outside world.
The little problem Of explaining this
discrepancy is puzzling the hnanciers of
A
are offered, and both probably help to ac-
count for the difference in figures. 1t is
argued that If Europe does not pay for
American food products and manufactures
in money 1t must be sending back TO this
country an immense amount Of American
railway and other securities. which have
been held as investments On the other side.
Or in other words America is buying back
its securities and getting out of debt to the
world. Europeans are Withdrawing their
investments on this side because they need
their money badly for their own domestic
uses.
There is no doubt that this is the fact
Every month nearly sees the selling Of
large blocks of Americans ON the New
York stock market ..for London account"
But it is not believed that American Sc
curities are being returned al anything
like the rate OF $3.50. 600 900 year
The other theory and the only one re-
manning, is that American money Is being
loaned in Europe in large sums. As mat
ter of fact. this is known TO be true. though
TO what extent can only be estimated.
II viii be seen, however. that this pro-
cess must come TO a stop in a very short
period OF time, If Americas exports con-
tinue to exceed it's imports. The Ameri-
can stocks and bonds held in Europe would
all be sent back in a year or two at the
most. The American loans in Europe will
draw interest to add to the principal sum
OF European Indebtedness.