Evening star., 1932-02-14
Yangtze Valley Especially A.
teeted by HostiIities in Vi
cinity of Shanghai.
BRITAIN PINNING HOPES
ON NEW TARIFF POLICY
Decline in Purchasing Power Is
Reducing French Internal
Price Structure.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

SHSNAeA NAopoISlA W SldI.
NEW YORK, February 13.-Cable
and radio dispatches to the Business
Week give the following survey of busi-
ness abroad for the week ending today:
Far East.-Prolonged activities at
Shanghai are having a detrimental ef-
feet on both Chinese and Japanese
business and trade in the entire Yangtze
valley is hampered. Foreign ships have
not been prevented from entering or
leaving the port. Chinese banks, closed
when hostilities commenced, have re-
opened to meet the usual heavy de-
mands Of the Chinese New Year season.
In the Tientsin-Peiping area, trade has
resumed something of its normal
routine. In Manchuria, it is still very
| much below normal. Department stores
IN Mukden showed a pickup of z
per cent in January over December.
LondOn.-Business in Britain, already
the most optimistic in Europe. is
buoyed up by new air of expectancy
following the governments tariff an
| nouncement. Not even the rapid spread
OF import quotas and exchange re-
strlctiOns has dampened the weeks en-
thuslasm. Announcement of the tariff
plan had Unexpectedly little effect on
stock markets due to discounting of the
enectS as long ago as when the Ma
| tlonal government was elected with an
| overwhelming majority and pledged to
| a program of protection.
Commodity Prices Steady.
Commodities also held steady, though
iron and steel and textiles anticipate
early beneficial effects.
Paris.-The continued steadiness. one
can even say the strength, of the Bourse
has not been affected by recent foreign
developments or by unfavorable domes-
! tic conditions. 1t probably reflects the
| generally held domestic viewpoint that
the depression is approaching the bot
| tom.
! Unemployment, nevertheless, is in
creasing relentlessly and other indi-
| Gators show no let-up in the contraction
of activity, while no doubt the new
| British tariffs will accentuate the in
creasing French trade deficits Not
withstanding the constantly enlarged
| probationary measures, the internal
price structure. except on articles of
first necessity, is crumbling as purchas-
ing power diminishes With the French
Line on the verge of liquidation, S4,-
| GOO, 900 government credit will probably
be granted in order TO keep the line
going for the next half year mean
while giving time for development. not
only of basis for some refinancing
program, but for revision of the whole
ship subsidy policy.
| The gold reserve of the Bank Of
France increased sl06, ,00o,O 900 in Janu-
! airy, not including the $4,000 900 Of
previously earmarked gold which was
brought to Paris from the United
States. but including gold newly ear
marked. The reserve has now reached
a new record of 50 1854 900 900.
Berlin.-Germany is riding toward
another major crisis, but this time q
dozen other countries are travelling in
the same direction. which fact is likely
to force international action, and, soon
to meet the present impossible economic
| situation.
Financial indicators.
Strategic financial indicators are
awry. The gold reserve position Of the
Reichsbank is weaker The net gold
balance for January is down Si5.0O0,-
| 000 Even with all the restrictions,
which seemed wateTight when decreed,
the government still is not successfully
| collecting the amounts of foreign ex-
change due from payment for German
exports. Industrial activities are de-
| clining rapidly, due especially to the
falling off of export orders The coal
| and steel industries are showing in
creasingly less resistance to depression