No Devaluation Now

Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rab Butler, the doctor who must prescribe for Britain's slight touch of inflation, was in Istanbul last week to reassure the men of international finance, gathered for the tenth annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund. Recently, European bankers have shown an embarrassing lack of confidence in the value of the pound--partly brought on by Britain's faltering financial situation, partly because of rumors that Britain might devalue it. Butler was firm. "We do not contemplate any early move on any--and I repeat any--aspects of the exchange front," he told the Fund's governors. In other words, Britain was not going to devalue the pound (current exchange rate: $2.80). Having not dared risk convertibility when the pound was strong, London had no intention at all of attempting it when the pound was wobbly.

As for Britain's feverish condition, Butler promised a cure without either "physical controls" (i.e., rationing) or restricting imports. It would help, he implied, if the U.S. would get cracking on its professed desire for liberalized trade. "In recent weeks, there have been a number of signs of backpedaling," he remarked carefully, a pointed reference to President Eisenhower's recent decision to allow a 50% rise in tariffs on imported bicycles. "Now should be the time surely to abandon the metaphor and speed of the velocipede and hope for a more up-to-date propulsion toward wider trade opportunities."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.