tobacco. in Exports of vegetable food products from the United States to Cuba of met reached nearly the same total in 1938 as in 1937, for the decreases in reat shipments of some commodities were largely counterbalanced by increases in other exports. Exports of machinery, vehicles, metals, Des) and nonmetallic minerals, chemicals, wood, and paper to Cuba were Cuba in smaller in value in 1938 than in 1937, but in each case remained larger in value than in 1936. Cuba d mall la States: from the sha 5 percen Table 9.-Principal Commodities in Trade of the United States With Cuba NOTE. Data for individual export items include only United States products. Import commodities are "general imports" in 1929 and 1932 and "imports for consumption" in 1937 and 1938. ད Upper leather (including patent). 2, 534 668 1,592 1,026 1,000 pr.. 416 Animal oils and greases, inedible...1,000 lb.. 9, 468 13, 010 1, 495 Wheat flour: 5, 302 Wholly of domestic wheat. 1,000 bbl.. Onions... Largely of imported wheat. Potatoes, white. Other vegetables and preparations. Fruits and preparations.. Rubber and manufactures. 1,000 lb.. 51 147 22, 500 20,941 104 255 number. 138, 170 60, 629 81, 713 Raw cotton.. 40 bales.. 7, 310 36 Cotton yarn.. 517 Cotton cloth, duck, etc.. 1,000 sq. yd. 76, 614 50, 163 Cotton bags. 1,000 lb.. 1,927 1,997 3, 128 7,423 7,609 4,515 Broad silks. es i 1,000 yd.. 832 232 107 госа Rayon piece goods. 1,000 sq. yd.. Sawmill products.. Hosiery (cotton, silk, rayon)...1,000 doz. pr.. 141 148 1,367 Boards, etc., southern pine..1,000 bd. ft. 73, 225 Box shooks. 2, 262 328 1,460 1,215 3, 668 Paper and manufactures. Wrapping paper. Paperboard.. Coal, bituminous.. Petroleum and products... 1,496 Crude petroleum. 4, 921 2, 345 1, 188 .do. 93 29 111 37 1, 106 426 1, 083 659 790 136 827 5,456 Iron and steel sheets, galvanized 1,000 lb. 13, 439 3, 691 14, 737 Table 9.-Principal Commodities in Trade of the United States With Cuba-Con. 2 Figures for 1929 and 1932 have not been adjusted for minor transfers in classifications of later years. WEST INDIES OTHER THAN CUBA The value of United States exports to Bermuda and the West Indies other than Cuba was reported at $68,732,000 in 1937 and at $75,678,000 in 1938, with the increase occurring primarily in shipments to the Netherlands West Indies. The several islands received the following proportions of total exports to them during 1938: British West Indies, 28 percent; Dominican Republic, 7.5 percent; Netherlands West Indies, 57 percent; French West Indies, 2.7 percent; and Haiti, 4.8 percent. Imports from the entire area decreased from $37,107,000 in 1937 to $34,264,000 in 1938, the respective areas supplying in 1938 the following proportions of the total: British West Indies, 14 percent; Dominican Republic, 17 percent; Netherlands West Indies, 60 percent; French West Indies, less than 1 percent; and Haiti, 9 percent. British West Indies and Bermuda.-Exports from the United States to the British West Indies and Bermuda as a group totaled $21,736,000 in 1937 and $21,564,000 in 1938. In this trade, machinery and With a vehicles in 1938 were valued at $6,128,000 ($6,381,000 in 1937), of which refinery machinery was $2,747,000 ($3,055,000 in 1937); vegelue (table food products, $2,158,000 ($1,794,000 in 1937); wood and paper, $2,401,000 ($2,409,000 in 1937); metals and manufactures, mainly of 1832 iron and steel, $2,039,000 ($2,505,000 in 1937); textiles and manufactures, $2,023,000 ($1,473,000 in 1937); nonmetallic minerals, $1,484,000 ($1,882,000 in 1937); chemicals and related products, $1,493,000 ($1,412,000 in 1937); and all other articles, $3,838,000 ($3,880,000 in 1937). Imports (for consumption) into the United States from these islands decreased from $7,097,000 in 1937 to $4,742,000 in 1938. Figures of 9314 principal commodities in 1938, with 1937 data in parentheses, were as follows: Cocoa, 20,557,000 pounds valued at $1,170,000 (17,844,000 696 1,554 255 4 125 43 71 356 74 464 30 345 38 14,14. MILLIONS OF DOLLARS (Logarithmic Scale) 200 80 70 60 EXPORTS, INCLUDING REEXPORTS 50 40 30 20 GENERAL IMPORTS 10 | 1901-1905| 1906-1910 | 1911-1915 | 1916-1920| 1921-1925 | 1926-1930 1931-1935 1936-1940 D.0.9137 Figure 6.-Trade of the United States With Bermuda and the West Indies Other Than Cuba. pounds, $2,174,000); tonka beans, 364,000 pounds, valued at $611,000 (294,000 pounds, $473,000); other spices, 3,439,000 pounds, $416,000 (3,681,000 pounds, $416,000); alcoholic beverages, 104,000 proof gallons valued at $393,000 (122,000 proof gallons, $501,000); molasses, 1,486,000 gallons valued at $355,000 (2,953,000 gallons, $388,000); and coconuts, 21,134,000 valued at $279,000 (24,992,000 at $383,000). Netherlands West Indies.-The trade between the United States and the Netherlands West Indies increased substantially in 1937, and in 1938 outgoing shipments again showed a marked gain. The expansion in this trade has been largely due to the growth in the refining of petroleum on the island of Curacao, where practically the entire production of Venezuelan and some of the Colombian petroleum is treated. In United States exports to these islands, valued at $42,767,000 in 1938 ($34,197,000 in 1937), the following items constituted threefourths of the total: Petroleum products, in part for blending purposes, valued at $22,013,000 ($21,326,000 in 1937); industrial machinery at $7,052,000 ($2,537,000 in 1937), of which nearly three-fourths was refinery machinery; and iron and steel-mill products, $2,326,000 ($2,229,000 in 1937), of which over three-fifths represented storage tanks and tubular products. Other principal exports in 1938 included cigarettes, aircraft, cotton wearing apparel, and automobiles, the values of which varied from $400,000 to nearly $900,000. The principal imports from these islands are fuel oil and partly refined petroleum products. These products were valued at $19,051,000 ($19,748,000 in 1937) out of the total imports for consumption of $20,118,000 in 1938 ($20,339,000 in 1937). A large part of the fuel-oil imports is used for refueling vessels. Aside from the petroleum items, the principal import from the Netherlands West Indies is aloes, which amounted to 518,000 pounds valued at $154,000 in 1938, as compared with 649,000 pounds valued at $134,000 in 1937. Dominican Republic.-Exports from the United States to the Dominican Republic in 1938 were valued at $5,696,000, as compared with $6,469,000 in 1937. This total included machinery and vehicles valued at $1,132,000 ($1,549,000 in 1937); textiles and textile manufactures, $842,000 ($919,000 in 1937), of which cotton cloth amounted to 4,710,000 square yards valued at $486,000 (3,876,000 square yards at $507,000 in 1937); metals and manufactures, $743,000 ($903,000 in 1937); vegetable food products, $672,000 ($643,000 in 1937); nonmetallic minerals, $472,000 ($597,000 in 1937); chemicals and related products, $468,000 ($491,000 in 1937); and all other articles $1,367,000, the same figure as in 1937. United States imports for consumption from the Dominican Republic were valued at $5,829,000 in 1938 and at $7,378,000 in 1937. Principal imports in 1938 included 53,583,000 pounds of cocoa valued at $2,060,000 (37,935,000 pounds, $2,973,000 in 1937); 122,627,000 pounds of cane sugar at $1,255,000 (153,661,000 pounds, $1,710,000 in 1937); 20,608,000 gallons of molasses at $777,000 (20,792,000 gallons, $830,000 in 1937); 6,061,000 pounds of coffee at $495,000 (6,513,000 pounds, $584,000 in 1937) and 288,000 bushels of corn at $164,000 (413,000 bushels, $308,000 in 1937). Haiti. Exports from the United States to Haiti decreased from $4,084,000 in 1937 to $3,642,000 in 1938. Principal commodities in 1938 included cotton cloth, duck, and tire fabric, 15,234,000 square yards valued at $1,131,000 (9,227,000 square yards, $879,000 in 1937); wheat flour, 81,868 barrels at $414,000 (101,762 barrels, $629,000 in 1937); machinery and vehicles, $497,000 ($593,000 in 1937); nonmetallic minerals, $247,000 ($349,000 in 1937); and metals and manufactures, $236,000 ($284,000 in 1937). United States imports for consumption from Haiti increased from $2,889,000 in 1937 to $2,962,000 in 1938. Coffee was the chief import in 1938-18,113,000 pounds valued at $1,027,000 (11,849,000 pounds, $847,000 in 1937)-followed by bananas, 1,443,000 bunches valued at $686,000 (1,379,000 bunches, $682,000 in 1937); sisal and henequen fiber, 6,134 tons at $481,000 (5,545 tons, $616,000 in 1937); and cane sugar, 34,877,000 pounds at $355,000 (9,598,000 pounds, $99,000 in 1937). MEXICO Mexico was one of the leading countries to which United States exports decreased substantially in value during 1938. The marked reduction was caused by a combination of circumstances, including the upward revisions in Mexican import tariffs in January 1938 and the marked weakness of the peso; an important factor was the general business decline brought on by the conflict in the oil industry, which 00. oil and ed at $ utomobil culminated in the expropriation, on March 18, of the properties of the principal petroleum producing and distributing companies. United States exports to Mexico declined 43 percent during the year as compared with 1937, or 5 times the decrease shown for our exports to the world. During the period of great business uncertainty in Mexico of the and of marked decline in the peso, particularly in April, exports roleum dropped to less than two-fifths the value in the corresponding saloes period of 1937. onsumpt as com ates to as comp and re _xtile m amou uare ($900 The changes in the Mexican import tariff in 1938 involved a sharp upward revision in the rates on a wide range of commodities (over 200) in January 1938; and, although the increases were modified somewhat on May 1, the tariffs in force continued higher than in 1937 through August 27, 1938. At that time, the January increases were canceled with the exception of those on automobiles, including certain parts for MILLIONS OF DOLLARS (Logarithmic Scale) 300 200 IMPORTS, INCLUDING GOLD & SILVER in 19 icals: er artic 1 1901-1905 1906-1910 | 1911-1915 1916-1920|1921-1925 | 1926-1930 | 1931-1935 |_1936-1940 | Figure 7.-Trade of the United States With Mexico. D.D.9138 assembly. On August 30, reductions were made in the rates on certain commodities, but automobiles and parts were subjected to the increased rates from January to the end of the year. The Mexican Government levied a tax on most exported products effective August 9, 1938. The purpose of this tax, according to the preamble to the decree, was to enable the Government to absorb a certain percentage of the profits realized by exporters as a result of the depreciation of the peso and at the same time to provide funds with which to subsidize imports of essential products, thereby offsetting a part of the increase of prices within the country. Export Commodities. The most important United States exports to Mexico are machinery and vehicles, and the value of these dropped nearly three-fifths in 1938 to $21,576,000 from $50,894,000 in 1937. The restriction of buying by Mexican Government agencies in 1938 as a result of declining Federal revenues was an important factor in this connection. During 1937 agencies of the Government purchased approximately $10,000,000 worth of equipment and supplies in the United States, including roadbuilding machinery, railway equipment, farm tools and machinery, well-drilling and refining installations, and machinery for a new Government-owned sugar mill. Exports of all these items to Mexico in |