The times., 1899-04-10
TRADE BORN OF EXPANSION.
a Considerable balance In Favor OF
American Exuorfcrx


The Acting Secretary of War has given
out for publication some very interesting
and valuable statistics regarding the trade
OF the United States with the islands of
Cuba. Porto Rico. and the Philippines.
In commenting upon the same Secretary
Meiklejohn calls attention to the fact that
normal conditions of trade have not yet
been fully restored between the United
States and the islands named. Neverthe-
less, he believes that the showing made is
sufficiently flattering TO warrant close scru-
tiny on the part OF commercial men every
where
The returns for the month of March are
not yet compiled, but those for February
shcw an increase of imports from the ISL
ands into this country amounting to 1914
iOS. and corresponding increase of ex-
ports from the United States To the
| Islands of 6sS.269. as compared with the
same month year ago
The trade OF the United States with the
Philippines begins to show the natural
growth due to the direction OF the earnest
attention of American exporters TO the
archipelago. While the exports from our
ports TO the Philippine Islands for Febru-
airy OF last year amounted only to 81 ,eO7.
| Tor the same month this year they are
more than nine times as much. being
Sls.529. For the eight months ending with
FEBRUARY 2S, 1898, they were only s69.-
20 while for the corresponding period OF
the present fiscal year they show a gain
OF nearly 20 per cent. reaching sl1T.02i.
| The American export trade 10 Manila
sun mas before 1t an era of wonderful de-
velopment, as American vessels again be-
come engaged in the trade, before the ex-
ports shall equal in value our imports from
the islands. This is shown by our direct
importations for February, which were
l
1 cent over the SlS6.25S worth OF goods i'm
ported for the same month last year.
Notwithstanding the decline OF imports
I INTO the United States from the Philippines
during the months of active warfare. the
\ imports for the eight months preceding
March reached s2.641.175. as compared with
-, lo2, ,SSs for similar period the year
before.
Our trade with Porto Rico likewise shows
an excess of imports over exports to that
island. For the eight months of the fiscal
year the imports from Porto Rico to the
United States gained $50. Goa in value over
| the former year. being s5S5. .Ss4 against
s525.SS4. OF this gain more than half,
or. to be exact, s35,552 was in the month of
February. when the imports of 1899 reached
sl2i,61S.O9 in value as against $50 IS6 for
1898. The. gain for this month alone was
| 40 per cent
4
and Porto Rico Is now in favor of cur
exporters as for the same month the ex-
ports were $267. .s19. Or sl70.545 in excess
| OF those OF 1898, when the returned value
was only s9I,074. For the eight months Of
| the fiscal year the exports amounted to
! Sl,S26.596. handsome gain of $I2, ,596 de-
| yeloped regardless of the several months
when the ports OF the island were closed
| to our wares and merchandise.
| Trade with Cuba has been in the past
/ several times as large as our trade with
| Porto Rico and the Philippines combined.
| Yet. SO great is the latent power of the
| island commerce 1t 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 s2.059.129. while for the same
month OF the current year the handsome
increase of nearly a quarter Of a million
brought the figures TO s2.507. $40. while for
the period Of July /. 1898. TO February IS.
| 1889. the total imports to United States
ports from Cuba were s9,17S,77I. against
| 81. .02S for the like period year earlier.
| This increase of more than two and three
quarters millions mainly occurred during
the last several months when the crops
were being shipped.
The exports to- Cuba have also prospsred.
! those of January and February showing an
! increase of over a million dollars in value.
\ For February 1895, the merchandise ex-
! ported from this country to Cuba was
valued at 81, ,166,1i4, while for the same
four weeks OF 1899 the figures were
\ S1.671 .S46 The aggregate worth OF the ex-
| ports from the first of last July to the end
of February is given at S10.142,949. an in
crease of SO per cent over the preceding