Evening star., 1945-08-26


which the United States hopes to shiI
monthly to France between now ane
the end of the year are the minimum
amount necessary to keep railroads anc
public utilities operating. These ship.
ments represent "stop-gap" program
which, it is hoped, will hold France.
faltering economy together until canal
can be cleared and railroads and high.
ways repaired to permit the movement o.
larger amounts of coal from Northern
France and the Saar to industrial
centers.
Frances precarious food situation too
is closely linked with transport. Econ
omists here who receive frequent re-
ports on conditions in France say
that there is ample food in the prov
inces, but it cannot be efficiently dis
tributed. Production in French coal
mines, they say, is hampered by the
fact that the miners are on a basic
diet of about 1,700 calories, whereas s.
600 are necessary to sustain a man doing
heavy work on an 8-hour daily basis.
Industrial workers in Paris and other
large cities are forced to absent them
selves from their jobs one or two days
a week in order to bicycle into the coun-
try and buy food from the farmers.
Imitation Adds to Woes.
Naturally, this acute scarcity of con-
sumption goods has been accompanied
by its concommitant-inhat Today
the official exchange rate between French
and American currencies is l france for
2 cents, whereas, according to estimates
of Commerce Department officials, the
real purchasing power of the franc, in
terms of the American retail market, is
approximately l cent.
The resulting high price of French
commodities in terms of American
money has caused deep resentment
among United States soldiers in France,
who feel that they are being "gypped." !"
1t was in an attempt to alleviate this
feeling that France last week granted
American soldiers bonus of $50 francs
per month-about $17-which means
rate of exchange. Although Frances
economic dilemma is understood clearly
enough by the State Department and
White House, it probably is not by the
average soldier and his family, and
many veterans are returning here with
bitter feeling toward the French.
This emotion, naturally, is reciprocal
ed by many Frenchmen who resent the
far higher standard of living enjoyed by
the American soldiers. Also, our ma
tional habit Of boasting about our mill
tary natght does not set well with a -peo-
pie who have tasted the dregs of defeat
after being for many years the dom
inant power on the continent These
emotional factors, however, will prob
ably be assuaged by time, and do not
weigh heavily in relations between
America and France on an official level.
Reparations Discussed.
In connection with the solution of
her economic problem, France is eager
to know the extent to which she may
rely on German reparations in kind
industrial machinery stolen from
France, Saar coal, iron and other metals.
The, Potsdam agreement provided only
that America and Great Britain and
other Allies entitled to reparations would
receive them from the western zone of
Germany and from German assets
abroad. Undoubtedly the reparations
question has bulked large in Gen. de
Gaulle's talks with the President.
Having once solved her basic coal,
transport and food problems, the next
step in the restoration of French econ
omy will be the re-establishment of her
foreign trade and the tourist business
which was a rich source of foreign ex-
change before the war. Trade between
France and America was never large
in comparison with the commerce of
either countries with some others, nota-
bly, Great Britain. In 1888, the last
goods worth SIG, ,252 900 and bought from
her commodities worth $16,684. 900.
However, this trade was well balanced
and consisted largely of items of
noncompetitive nature. Our principal
imports were perfumes, laces and other
luxury goods, while we sold France sub
stantial amounts of industrial ma
chinery.
The Treasury Department recently
abolished wartime financial controls on
trade with France and number of
American corporations are re-establish-
ing their Paris Offices.
Trade at Present Retarded.
However, it is likely to be at least a
year or two before private trade be-
tween the two countries reaches any
thing like its prewar status. Aside from
the shipping problem which is likely
to remain acute until the bulk of Amer
ican troops have been repatriated from
Europe and the Far East, the present
imitation of the franc makes French
exports too high in price for a wide
sale in the American market.
This imitation Is, in turn, closely tied
up with the large number of American
troops ps-between 1,000,0O and 2O00, ,0O0-
in France awaiting redeployment. The
French, it is understood here, are afraid
to lower the value of the franc for fear
that American troops will make heavy
inroads on the countryis limited supply
Of consumption goods.
Still another factor in Frances eco
nomic situation is the occupancy of
virtually all the large hotels in Paris
and on the Riviera by American troops.
The French are eager to regain the use
OF these In order to build up their tour
ist trade as soon as possible. While
these facilities are obviously necessary,