French Broad hustler and Western Carolina Democrat. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1915-1916, 1916-07-20
United STATES FOREIGN
TRADE SETS HIGH RECORD.
IRON and Steel Products Shipped
Abroad Total se1sJOOO.OOO-
Explosives Second.

roviaw of the foreign trade of the
United states for the fiscal year just
closed, issued by the Department u
Commerce. shows the hand OF Euro
mean war all down h list OF hgufes
nm exports OF staple mmodltle
IRON, steel and explosives 9 the !lst
of exports by a wide margin, faRahS
increased enormously over the feeoIu
faures of 1915. and passed even ce%oh
and wheat in the race.
MANY interesting deductions as 70
the effect of the war on the demanu
for this country's products may De
made from the tables giving the eA-
MORT figures for 1916, 1915 and 1914.
I The exDort figures in staple
Ties show. in general, a tendency TO re-
tnrn toward the normal. Many OF the
exnorts Which Ieaped to amazing ng-
ures in the first year Of the war nave
fa1lnn off somewhat; others when
suffered at the start Of the war nave
regained lost ground, and many Wnlch
showed little effect. Of war condltlolS
lost wear now reveal a healthy IN
increase.
Total Trade $6,5OO,OOQsOO0.
The total foreign trade of he oun-
trv for the fiscal year of 1916 was in
! the neighborhood Of $4,000, 100000; ex-
ports being $4,3A5, 000, 900, while I'M
norts were 81, $50, 0OO.O00-a balance Of
So 1865 100000 for the year.
Iron and steel products lead the list
and surpass all previous RECORDS Win
a total of 1918, 600, 600 of exports, near.
" three times the figures for 1919 OF
1925, 900, 900, which were below those
Of 1914-$251 100000.
On the other hand, explosives IN
going to second rank. made an amaz-
ing leap from Sal, O00 900 in 1915 to
S473, 900, 900 in 1916-nearly a tenfold
increase, due solely to the war, in a
product which in 1914 was one of the
minor factors. worth but 100000 a
year.
Cotton Shipments Decrease.
Raw cotton which in 1914 was our
chief product worth 100000 900 a
| year. has not yet recovered from the
blow Of the war, and fell off $6,000,OOO
more on the year, from $4,000, 900 to
$3.50, OOO, 900. Copper and brass manu-
features, meat, automobiles and chem
icals all made big gains. as did man
ufactured cotton, but wheat and flour
fell from $428, 900, 900 in 1915 to $314,-
100000 last year.
In general, in estimating the effect
of the war on export trade, export
staples may be Jumped in four classes:
Those which, tremendously stimu-
lated by the first year OF the war, con-
tinued to gain in the second year,
l IT, 0c RI,o-z -rnJr,0t- ~ annEro honS
of war and of direct use in fighting
The most striking gain in this group
was that of explosives. Other minor
lines in the group were mineral oils
refined sugar, leathep mules, ZINC
manufactures and wool manufactures
Those products which, having in
creased in the first year of the war
dropped back again in the second. The
most striking example Of this class
are oats and oatmeal, which went from
$1,000, 900 to $50, OO0, 900 between 1914
and 1915, but this year dropped back
: to $50, 100000. Others were cotton
seed, oil cake and meal, nickel oxide
matte, etc.
The third class is composed of pro-
ducts which, blighted by the first year
of the war, recovered in the second
These include copper manufactures,
which fell from $146. OOO, 900 to $780,
100000 and then recovered to $17G.-
coo, 900; mineral oils, which went from
$152, 0OO, 900 down to $134, 900, 900 and
back again to $165, 600, 900; wool and
wood manufactures, electrical goods,
railway cars. agricultural implements,
naval stores. etc.
An interesting item on-the list, which
may show one symptom of the effects
of the long strain of conflict. is the
sudden jump in exports of spirits,
wines and liquors, which from $4,000
600 in 1914 and $4,000, 900 in 1915 sud-
denly shot up to $4,000, 900 in 1916.
The fourth class Of exports is made
up of those products which show COM
p~aratively little variation. These in
clude coal. tobacco, fruits, paper and
manufactures, rye and rye -four, and
haXseed and its products.
a sugar continues to lead our i'm
ports by a wide margin, having stead
lily increased from $1O1, 900, 900 in 1914,
to SIG, 900, 900 last year, and $2O6, OOO,-
600 in 1916. Rubber comes second,
having jumped from $S7, 900 900 to
$159.OOO, 900 in one year. Then follow
hides and skins, which went up from
$1O4,OOO,0 900 to $157, 100000; raw wool.
raw silk, coffee and chemicals.