14:
CONFIDENTIAL
- 74
12. BRITISH TRADE IN CHINA.
not attached
Attached is an extract from the Report prepared by the Trade Mission which went to China last September. The
Report is not yet published and the source of the
information in the attached document should not be
revealed. The extract gives a good rough picture of economic conditions in China and there is little that
needs to be added to it.
United Kingdom's Commercial Relations with China.
Our views about prospects of trade with China
arc naturally coloured by the facts set up in this extract. Our attitude can perhaps best be described as one of friendly but helpless sympathy for the Chineso.
We are, unfortunately, in so dire a situation ourselves economically, that it would be pointless to give even the
slightest hope to the Chinese that wo might be able to help
economically. We have done what we could with our
contributions to U.N.R.R...., although this may soom smr.11 compared with American help; there is nothing, however,
which we can do either at the moment or in the foreseeable
future in the way of additional finance, whether this takes
the form of long-term loans, or even short-term credits
on particular contracts. In fact, the situation is
so scrious that at any rate until our financial position is casior the Treasury have ruled out even assistance
in the way of credits to British firms established in
China which suffered damage or loss as a result of war.
On the other hand, the fact that both countries
are seriously handicapped by their financial difficulties
need/