§ 8. Dr. HOWITTasked the President of the Board of Trade the percentage of total imports into each of the countries with which treaties have been signed which has been derived from the United Kingdom during the last six months or for the latest available period and during the corresponding period prior to the signature of the treaties?
§ Mr. RUNCIMANAs the answer involves a tabular statement, I will circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Following is the answer:
§ The following statement shows in respect of those countries with which trade agreements have been concluded, the proportions 170 of the total imports derived from the United Kingdom during the latest six months for which the particulars are available, together with the proportions for the corresponding periods of the previous year.
| Country. | Period. | Imports from the United Kingdom as a Percentage of Total Imports. |
| Per cent. | ||
| Finland | Aug., 1933—Jan., 1934 | 20.9 |
| Aug., 1932—Jan., 1933 | 18.0 | |
| Sweden | July—Dec, 1933 | 19.1 |
| July—Dec, 1932 | (a) | |
| Norway | April-Sept., 1933 | 21.7 |
| April—Sept., 1932 | 21.7 | |
| Iceland | Information not available. | |
| Denmark | Aug., 1933—Jan., 1934 | 28.7 |
| Aug., 1932—Jan., 1933 | 24.9 | |
| Germany | July—Dec, 1933 | 5.7 |
| July—Dec, 1932 | 5.1 | |
| Argentine | July—Dec, 1933 | 21.5 |
| Republic. | July—Dec, 1932 | (a) |
| (a) Not available in respect of this period, but for the whole years 1933 and 1932 the corresponding percentages for Sweden were 17.92 and 16.81, respectively, and for the Argentine Republic 21.4 and 20.4, respectively. |
§ Notes.—1. The percentage figures given above relate to the share of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, except in the case of Finland, for which country the figures relate to the share of the British Isles as a whole.
§ 2. The values of the total imports upon which the percentages are based relate to merchandise retained for home consumption in the case of Sweden, Germany and the Argentine Republic, and to aggregate imports in the case of Finland, Norway and Denmark.
§ 3. The percentage figures for Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark relate to goods purchased in the United Kingdom, and those for Germany and the Argentine Republic to goods produced in the United Kingdom.
§ 12. Dr. HOWITTasked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that, in spite of the trade agreement concluded with Norway, both the imports from and the exports to that country in 1933 were lower than in the previous year; and if he will state the causes of this decline?
§ Mr. RUNCIMANI am aware that the value of the trade was less in 1933 than in 1932, but the whole of the decrease 171 occurred in the first three-quarters of the year. The Anglo-Norwegian Trade Agreement did not come into force until the 15th July, 1933, and there was an appreciable increase both in imports from Norway into the United Kingdom and in exports of United Kingdom goods to Norway in the fourth quarter of 1933 as compared with the corresponding period of 1932. The improvement continued in January of this year.