§ Mr. Haleasked the President of the Board of Trade what are the values respectively, of cotton spinning machinery and cotton weaving machinery produced in this country in 1948; what percentage of each was allocated for export; what percentage has actually been exported; and what percentage has been ordered for installation in the home cotton industry.
§ Mr. H. WilsonI regret that complete information for the whole of 1948 cannot yet be given, but figures for the first nine12W months are available. They are as follows:
- 1. Estimated value of cotton machinery produced in this country during the first nine months of 1948:
- (a) Spinning (including preparation, spinning, doubling and winding)—£12,030,000.
- (b) Weaving (including weaving preparation, automatic and non-automatic looms, dobby and jacquard makers)—£2,630,000.
- 2. The export target for textile machinery was fixed at £2.83 million monthly at end of 1948 representing about 60 per cent. of expected production. No separate target was fixed for cotton machinery.
- 3. Estimated percentages of cotton machinery production exported during the first nine months of 1948:
- (a) Spinning 78 per cent.
- (b) Weaving 51 per cent.
- 4. Percentage of outstanding orders on manufacturers' books at 30th September, 1948, for installation in the home cotton industry:
- (a) Spinning 7 per cent.
- (b) Weaving 35 per cent.