ply to this letter should be addressed to THE SECRETARY,
TREASURY,
WHITEHALL, LONDON, S.W.1. the following number quoted,
12310
17
5
TREASURY CHAMBERS.
25-April 1917.
21447
Sir,
REC REG 25 PR 17
I am directed by the Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's
Treasury to transmit to you herewith, to be laid before
Mr. Secretary Long, the enclosed copy of a letter with enclosure received from the Treasury Chest Officer, Hong Kong,
in regard to the expense of laying down funds for Government
expenditure in Tientsin, Wei-hai-wei and Shanghai. From enquiries which They have caused to be made My Lords gather
that the reason for the specially high expense incurred is that
Hong Kong currency is at an appreciable discount throughout
China relatively to the silver content of the dollar. This discount is stated to be due partly to trade conditions during the war which have led to opportumities for increased exports from Shanghai and other ports which have not been available for Hong Kong and partly to the fact that the prohibition of the export of dollars from Hong Kong has prevented the natural corrective of the exchanges from operating to destroy the discount on Hong Kong currency.
It appears to Their Lordships that not only ecula this disccnt be to some extent reduced but also that the high charges incurred by the Hong Kong Treasury Chest in meeting demands for funds at Shanghai and elsewhere could be avoided if the Treasury Chest Officer were permitted to make arrangements for the shipment of dollars in response to scre The Under Secretary of State.
COLONIAL OFFICE.
of
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.