A Sugar Agreement The World Sugar Conference, which has been
held in London during the last month, is expected to close at the end of next week, with a greater measure of achievement to its credit than most people had looked for. A general con- vention was made possible when, after the Czechoslovak delegation had walked out, it was agreed to meet Czecho- slovakia's export-quota demand. It appears that the total of export quotas granted may exceed the free world market of 3,170,000 tons by as much as 430,000 tons. This seems a guarantee against any great rise in sugar prices and indeed the stability of the proposed convention appears to depend on a considerable increase in the world demand• for sugar. But in itself it is certainly an advantage that the free market has not been restricted. Unfortunately, the Conference has not been able to attack the crux of the sugar problem— the network of quotas, tariffs, subsidies raised to protect domestic industries. What can be claimed for it is that it has demonstrated that international economic agreements are a possibility, and that dose co-operation between Great Britain and the United States can yield fruitful results.
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