§ Mr. Gouldasked the Secretary of State for Trade what were the terms of trade and relative volume of trade in machinery and transport equipment in each year since 1970;and if he will make a statement on the current competitiveness of British manufacturers in the light of these figures.
§ Mr. MeacherThe figures required are given in table F4 of the June issue of the "Monthly Review of External Trade Statistics", a copy of which is in the House of Commons Library. While movements in the terms of trade are a guide to changes in competitiveness, they are not a good indicator, since different products may be exported from those imported. Further, generally, there is a time-lag between changes in competitiveness and changes in the volume of exports and imports.