It is very interesting to see how Argentina has passed from small to great things in matters of trade.
The following table shows in round figures her progress during a space of more than a hundred years. They refer to her total foreign trade.
| 1795 | £1,400,000 |
| 1837 | 2,400,000 |
| 1850 | 4,300,000 |
| 1870 | 15,300,000 |
| 1880 | 20,100,000 |
| 1883 | 27,200,000 |
| 1891 | 34,086,000 |
| 1900 | 53,617,000 |
| 1908 | 127,700,000 |
Thus, in eight years, the foreign trade has far more than doubled. In former days the results of feverish development were by no means an unmixed benefit. Immense sums had been invested in railways and other enterprises, and the Mortgage Bank of the Province of Buenos Aires recklessly lent money upon land and credit was inflated. Everybody thought that unbounded riches were either in their possession or within reach, and the inevitable collapse followed. The difficulties were aggravated by the fluctuating state of the currency. At present the paper dollar circulates with a tolerably steady value of about 1s. 9d. There is a scheme for establishing a gold currency, and the gold held by the Conversion Office amounts to 132,769,134 dollars gold. The note circulation is over 500,000,000 dollars paper. In December, 1891, the Banco de La Nacion Argentina was opened with a capital of 50,000,000 dollars, now increased to 90,000,000. The Bank may lend money to the National Government, but the total amount is not to exceed 6,000,000 dollars, and it has no authority to place loans in other quarters.
The exports now demand our consideration. In 1908 the main items were:—
| Agricultural products | £48,013,032 |
| Pastoral products | 27,023,691 |
| Forest products | 1,269,446 |
| Fish and Game | 99,726 |
A more detailed investigation of the figures shows that of wheat 3,636,294 tons were exported, of maize 1,711,804, of linseed 1,055,650, of oats 440,041. The shipments of wool were 175,538 tons, of frozen beef 180,915, of jerked beef 6,650. Quebracho wood stood at 254,571 tons, quebracho at 48,162, and hay at 32,078. Hides were largely exported.
For 1908 the following is the percentage of imports received by various countries: England, 21·4; Belgium, 9·8; Germany 9·5; France, 7·9; Brazil, 4·1; United States, 3·6.
The following table shows our reciprocal trade with Argentina in 1907[108]:—
| Imports into England. | |
| Wheat | £8,044,636 |
| Maize | 5,000,219 |
| Fresh Mutton | 2,360,565 |
| Fresh Beef | 4,308,273 |
| Linseed | 1,977,466 |
| Wool | 1,689,639 |
| Exports from England. | |
| Cotton | £2,752,251 |
| Woollens | 1,080,795 |
| Iron and Manufactures | 3,511,803 |
| Machinery | 2,458,180 |
| Railway Carriages | 1,769,780 |
| Coal | 1,761,467 |