INCREASE OF TOTAL URUGUAYAN EXPORTS IN EIGHT YEARS
| During 1905 $ (Uruguayan) | 30,774,247 | |
| ” 1912 ” | 51,000,000 | |
| Increase, say, | $20,226,000 | = £4,303,000 |
Wool constitutes about nine-tenths of the exports of Uruguay.
Up to and including 1907 the Imports of Uruguay were in excess of her Exports. In 1908, however, the balance went the other way and is likely to remain there.
The excess of Exports over Imports in 1908 was valued at $2,840,206 (Uruguayan) and in 1909 at $7,966,658. In 1912 the Imports appear to have risen to $49,380,000 as against exports $51,000,000. Probably these last figures are roughly accurate; but the last year for which any full official Statistics appear to have been published was 1911.
As has already been seen, the chief countries of destination of Argentine Exports prior to the War were (generally in the following order): The United Kingdom, Germany, France, Belgium, Brazil, the United States, Holland and Italy. Those of Uruguay went chiefly to France, Belgium, Germany, Argentina and the United Kingdom. While Argentina Imported principally from the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, France, Italy, Belgium and Spain; and Uruguay from the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States, France, Italy, Belgium and Argentina.
The Surplus of Revenue over Expenditure in both Republics may appear to remain always so small as only just to have avoided conversion into deficits. It should, however, be recollected that these countries are constantly engaged in carrying out Public Works which are necessary to the fuller development of their natural resources; such, for instance, as the very important new Port Works of Buenos Aires and Montevideo and the great Argentine systems of irrigation. Were the excess of Revenue greater it would still be spent, and wisely spent, on National Public Works and Improvements; which are the best assurance of its future which either country could make.
An instance of the rapid Commercial progress of the River Plate Countries is the fact that whereas in 1872 there were but four Banks in Argentina, in 1913 there were 143.
The latest (1914) Commercial and Industrial Census of the City of Buenos Aires shows that the number of Commercial (chiefly wholesale and retail trading) establishments in that City has increased from 17,985, as shown by the previous Census of 1904, to 29,600—an increase of 65%—while the number of Factories and Manufacturing establishments which in 1904 was 8,877 was in 1914 11,132—an increase of 25%. The motive power employed in these last-mentioned establishments has increased during the same period from 19,458 h.p. to 194,411 h.p.—an increase of 900%—while the number of persons employed has increased 112%.
An amusing but characteristic note is struck by comparison of the figures representing the annual sales of flour and tobacco respectively, the former being nearly $48,000,000 (paper) and the latter nearly £44,000,000 (paper).