U.S. balance of payments deficit highest yet

WEATHER SE England, Channel Islands : Cloudy, occasional light rain, dying out slowly. Wind northerly, light or moderate. Cool. Max. 13C (55F).

London, central •southern England, E Midlands: Mainly cloudy. A little rain at_first, probably brighter later. Wind northerly, light. Rather cold. Max. 15C (59F).

Edinburgh: Cloudy, hill fog and local slight drizzle. Wind northerly, light or moderate. Cool. Max. 10C (50F). W Midlands, SW, NW and central northern England: Sunny intervals developing. Also scattered showers. Wind northerly• Warmer. light Max. 17C locally (63F).

Glasgow area, Ireland: Variable cloud, sunny interhals Shattered Socallers, Wind haps thunder locally. light, variable or northerly. Warm. Max. 17C (63F). Outlook for Sunday and Monday: Sunny intervals in most areas and becoming generally rather warm, but showers in many places at first.

Rolls avoid further losses on a rapidly sliding market, has been reinforced by the publication of a series of key economic indicators over the last two days.

Biggest cause of anxiety for the financiers are the Commerce Department's balance of payments figures published on Thursday.

They indicate the biggest three-month deficit in the history of the American capitalism.

During the first quarter of this year the deficit shot up to $3,000 million, com›arec with the previous highest figure of $1,700 million.

Even this increase does not take into account the $867 million Drawing Rights ('paper gold') which America received in January and have been added to reserves.

Outflow

[his announcement, coiniding with news of falling industrial production and company profits and warnings of rising unemployment have sent stock prices Plunging to • seven-year Major sources of the payments crisis was a net outLATE_NEWS Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. Published by. Workers Press, 186a Clapham High Street, London, S.W.4. rinted by Plough Press Ltd. (1U), 0b Clapham High Street, London.

PETER JEFFRIES flow of liquid funds amountin to attracted illo his st European interest rates After a special meeting of economic advisors called by Nixon to review the crisis, the Federal Reserve announced a fall of per cent in industrial production compared with April of last year. almost con bine for the past year.

Next blow came on the profits front Commerce Department statistics here show that they are now falling at an annual rate of $6,250 millions, the worst for ten years about shulz Secretary George attend.

ance at Nixon meetings reinforces speculation may the te about 0 may now about to impose some wages control in an effort to proprices.

Jobless rise Federal Reserve Board chairman Dr Arthur Burns said after the meeting that he anticipated unemployment would continue to rise and promised urgent gramme Public works pro- considerations for an emerWorse true to tradition, Penh whilst mains in Phnom Chinese and namese have withdrawn and that Kosygin refuses, so far, to recognize the exile i ernment the Sihanouk which even Egyptians and Syrians recognize piece ece re Sta Stalinist bureau- silent on this cratic treachery. Why?

Don't you think

tween Soviet recognition of Lon Nol's CIA-sponsored dictatorship and the economic and technical assistance- -and diplomatic recognition — proided br the Soviet and ther E European regime for Franco, the Greek junta and the blooddrenched dictatorship of ing to poke his fingers - Suharto who is now to the Cambodian mess?

Your paper's attitude to this question 1S mixture of evasion and political dissimulation bordering duplicity.

Nowhere in your journal Sihanouk's appeal to cow for recognition of his government-in-exile.

Yet Wednesday's 'Star' informs readers that 'A message from Soviet Premier Kosygin Cambodia's Prince Sihanouk was published vesterday. greeting This is aimed at reducing unemployment, which has risen by 1.3 millions in the last year.

But Burns' comments did nothing to arrest Wall St's fall. The Dow Jones industrial average is now at a lower point than it was ten years ago.

Roughly $175,000 million have been wiped off values of New York stock prices since the wave of selling first started in 1968.

Nixon is now worried that confidence in the dollar and the economy is rapidly vanishing.

The first three months of the year have seen a $660 million decline of foreign purchases American securities.

The unresolved crisis facing_International Overseas Services must have caused a further serious fall over the past weeks.

Deficit

Of greatest importance, however, must be the impact of the mounting US deficit, now apparently almost out of control, on the A rising deficit means further piling up of dollars in European central banks, dollars which are unbacked by any American gold.

Such a trend could lead to a renewed run against the dollar and an escalation in the price of gold, on a far bigger scale than in 1968.

nge tr Soviet leaders are politically condoning the invasion of Cambodia and undermining the resistance of the Indo-Chinese peoples to US imperialism.

This is thé brutal truth of Kosygin's statement at his press conference in the first week of May:

'We recognize a neutralist government of Cambodia ..:

Since Sihanouk is no longer 'neutral' between the Americans and the NLF it is obvious that he (Sihanouk) cannot expect any political support from the Soviéts.

Consistent

Is it not obvious that your failure to even begin campaign for industrial action against the war is consistent with your refusal to expose and condemn the machinations of the Soviet leaders who still desire to use the war to weaken China and to 'settle' the Vietnamese question by diplomatic means ?

We ask these questions of you because we believe that it is simply impossible to remain silent about them and yet run a sustained campaign of industrial action against the Let there be no ambiguity or confusion about the character and prospects of the Cambodian invasion. THIRTY THOUSAND employers have been ordered