894.24/1586
The First Secretary of the British Embassy (Thorold) to Mr. T. K. Finletter, Special Assistant to the Secretary of State
My Dear Finletter: Thank you for your letter of August 19th32 regarding shipments of Manganese to Japan.
The position, in what you may term the pre-crisis period, was that exports of Manganese to Japan from India were restricted to 10,000 tons a month, which was approximately 80% of normal trade, and from Malaya to 1,700 tons a month, being about 60% of normal trade. The first stage in further restrictions was to reduce these quotas by 50%, and this no doubt accounts for the figure of 5,000 tons per month which you quote in your letter as having been the figure for exports from India.
Now, however, a further step has been taken under which no Export Licenses will be granted for any commodities from the Empire to Japan except in special cases where funds have become available as a result of permitted imports from Japan of commodities of particular value for our war purposes. Even so, licenses will only be granted for goods of least essential value to Japan. As a result of this we understand that no licenses for Manganese are now being granted for shipments to Japan, and if, in fact, 1,000 tons has been exported, as quoted in your letter, I think it may be taken that this had been in respect of a contract already made and paid for before the freezing regulations were brought in.
As far as Malaya is concerned, there are some added difficulties, in view of the fact that the mines are Japanese-owned and the position is somewhat the same as in the case of exports of iron ore from the Philippines. It is the intention to reduce these Manganese exports from Malaya as far as possible, but we have not yet received information as to the exact position at the moment.
I hope to be able to give you more precise details in both these cases before long but, in the meantime, you may take it little or no Manganese is at present being exported from India to Japan.
Yours sincerely,
- Not found in Department files.↩