Evening star., 1949-03-16
Swedes' Talent and Hard Work
Great Help inRebuiIding Trade
industrial Production Regarded as Key
To Restoring Economy With ECA Aid

many Swedes dismiss as unim-
portant.
In any case, whatever may have
been its past miscalculations,
Sweden today. in addition to
rationing things like butter. meat
and fuel. is taking extraordinary
measures to control imitation,
restrict non-essential imports and
hold down home consumption in
order to increase the production
Of goods that can be exported for
dollars. Some of these measures
have been criticized as likely to
do more harm than good, but on
the whole they have been we'll
received. Together with the
hoped-for revival of trade with
Germany and Eastern Europe, Gas
in the case of Denmark and Nor
way. Poland is sending signifi-
cant coal shipments to SWeden)
they are counted upon to restore
the country to economic equilib-
rum by the time the Marshall
Plan has run its course. Mean
while. though relatively small. our
ECA aid of about $47.000.000 for
the current fiscal year is enabling
the Swedes to buy critically needed
oil and machinery. without which
their long-term recovery program
would bog down.
Must Conserve Wood.
One of the complicating factors
in the program is the exhaustion
of Sweden's virgin forest reserves.
That means that the great lumber,
paper and wood pulp industry
which for many decades has pro-
duced almost half of the country's S
total exports-will have to pro-
duce and export less 80 that 1t
does not use up timber in excess
of the annual replacement growth.
In turn, that means that the ex-
port Of other products-new and
old-will have to be increased to
prevent a decline in the total VOL
ume of Swedish exports. In other
words. the SWedes must try to
step up their overseas sales Of
things like high quality iron and
steel, engineering equipment.
machinery and processed wood
and chemical manufactures.
The task the SwedeS thus have
set for themselves will not be easy,
especially in view of their shortage
of available manpower. But they
have high technical skill, admin
istrative brains, inventiveness and
experience in abundance. Evil
dence Of that can be found in all
parts Of the country-in Linkop-
ing, at SAAB's impressive under
ground plane factory, where COM
mercial aircraft and one of the
worlds best jet fighters are
being produced under about 100
feet of solid rock; in Sand
vixen. headquarters Of the Sand
vik Steel Works, whose fine
products are universally known;
in Sundsvall to the north, the
center of the huge Swedish
Cellulose Co., and in Gothenburg,
with its three big shipbuilding
yards. it's diesel-engine plant and
the giant SKF. the home Of the
ball-bearing that has worked a
revolution in modern industrial
life.
These are but few of Sweden s
many excellent enterprises. They
are representative of what has
made the country. despite its rel
Atively small size. famous as an
industrial producer. The hard
work and the great talent that
went into building them must still
be reckoned with as q rich natural
resource resource with which
the Swedes. if the world grows
saner. should be able to restore
themselves to full economic vigor
by 1928. It Is not for nothing
that John H. F. Haskell, chief Of
our ECA mission In Stockholm, has
said Of them that no people in
Europe are likely to make better
or more effective use Of American
aid.