§ 1. Colonel WOODCOCKasked the President of the Board of Trade the figures of the export trade of France for the years 1913, 1922, 1923, and 1924, respectively?
§ The PRESIDENT of the BOARD of TRADE (Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister)The answer includes a number of figures, and, with the permission of my hon. and gallant Friend, I will have it circulated in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Colonel WOODCOCKMay I ask whether, in view of the growing prosperity of France, it is not desirable that we should press our reparation claims there?
§ Following is the answer:
§ The officially-recorded values of the merchandise (national and nationalised) exported from France in the years specified, with their approximate sterling equivalents, were as follows:
| Value of Exports. | ||
| Year. | Million francs. | Million £. |
| 1913 | 6,880.2 | 272.8 |
| 1922 | 21,378.9 | 391.8 |
| 1923 | 30,432.6 | 401.8 |
| 1924 | 41,454.1 | 486.1 |
§ For 1913 the sterling equivalent has been calculated at the par of exchange, and for other years at the average of the quoted rates.
255§ The particulars relate to France, exclusive of Alsace-Lorraine in 1913, and inclusive of Alsace-Lorraine in the later years.