§ Mr. Footasked the President of the Board of Trade if he will give figures for the last half-yearly period available indicating the volume of United Kingdom 173W exports to Commonwealth countries expressed as a percentage of the volume exported in 1938; and if he will give these figures for the self-governing members of the Commonwealth and for the Colonies, respectively.
Mr. H. WilsonThe current series of index numbers of volume of United Kingdom exports is based on 1947. Compared with the average for that year, it is estimated that the volume of exports to the Commonwealth as a whole in July-December, 1950, had increased by 87 per cent., to the self-governing members of the Commonwealth by 92 per cent. and to the Colonies by 82 per cent. Only a very rough estimate can be made of changes in the volume of trade between 1938 and 1947. Exports to the Commonwealth as a whole in 1947 were about equal to the 1938 volume; the volume sent to the Colonies was probably about a fifth higher and exports to the self-governing members of the Commonwealth showed a small reduction compared with 1938.