11.
In the first quarter of this year
their sterling value was 8.2% higher than in
the corresponding period of last year.
1968 for the first time, I believe, in
During
the past decade we had both an improvement in
the balance of payments and a rate of growth
of about 4%. This is encouraging.
Allowing for a favourable invisible
balance of trade of between 220 million and
£30 million a month, the high current deficit
has been very much reduced and our task now
is to make this trend continue so that we move
into a substantial surplus.
12.
The strategy of the Government in
working for an adequate balance of payments
surplus is based on switching productive
resources to those sectors which benefit the
balance of payments.
We have made use of a number of
weapons to achieve the switch of resources:
our prices and incomes policy and our containment
of public expenditure are among the most
important in achieving this turn round.