893.515/1062: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in China (Johnson)
120. Reference Shanghai’s 270, May 18, 4 p.m., to Department. Treasury Department on May 18 issued to the press a statement by Secretary Morgenthau reading as follows:
“The representatives of the Chinese Ministry of Finance who have been in the United States to make some studies of our monetary and banking system, and to exchange views on monetary problems of mutual interest, have completed their mission and are returning to China.
Our conversations with them have been mutually instructive. I feel confident that the monetary program being pursued by the National Government of China is not only along sound lines, but constitutes an important step toward the desired goal of stability of world currencies.
To supplement their efforts toward that objective and to cooperate with them in their program of monetary reform and currency stabilization, and in accordance with our silver purchase policy, we have [Page 483] definitely indicated our willingness, under conditions mutually acceptable, to make purchases from the Central Bank of China of substantial amounts of silver, and also to make available to the Central Bank of China, under conditions which safeguard the interests of both countries, dollar exchange for currency stabilization purposes.
The mission headed by Mr. Chen has been instrumental in bringing about a more complete understanding of our mutual monetary problems.
I believe that only through full and frank exchange of views similar to that which has just taken place between the representatives of the Chinese Ministry of Finance and ourselves will it be possible to improve the internal stability of national currencies and with this achieve a greater international stability.
Please repeat to Nanking and Shanghai.