Office of the Historian

Editorial Note

The summary table (Table I) which follows contains the following headings: loans, property credits, and grants made to foreign countries between July 1, 1945 and December 31, 1949. The data presented here is similar in form to that found in Foreign Relations, 1948, volume I, Part 2, page 960, and the scope of the foreign assistance program in 1949 may be derived by comparing the two tables. This table is adapted from the National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Problems, Semiannual Report to the President and to the Congress: October 1, 1949—March 31, 1950 (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1950) which also contains supporting tables providing, a more detailed breakdown of the summary figures incorporated here. Table II, listing foreign aid by types of aid granted during the same time span, is printed on page 756; similar statistical information may also be obtained in the Economic Report of the President Transmitted to the Congress: 1950 (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1950), page 185.

The various components included in these tables may be defined as follows: Loans—Many represent “cash loans” anticipating repayment, in cash, of principal plus interest. Economic Cooperation Administration loans originated in commitments made by the Administrator, with most of the loans being made by the Export–Import Bank as agent for the Economic Cooperation Administration. Intermediate-term loans in connection with certain deficiency material projects are made directly by the Economic Cooperation Administration. Loans, in the case of the Economic Cooperation Administration, generally represent both the goods and funds furnished European Recovery Program participants on a credit basis. Commitments or authorizations approved by the Board of Directors of the Export–Import Bank which had not been formalized by credit agreements are also included in this loan category, as are the loans of agent banks fully guaranteed by the Export–Import Bank.

[Page 753]

Property credits—These represent aid to foreign governments in the form of credits extended in (a) the disposal of surplus property including merchant ships, (b) settlement for “lend-lease” articles and services, and (c) commodity credit used to finance raw material shipments to occupied areas for manufacture and export. Provisions governing the collection of principal and interest varied and called for payment in the form of different combinations of United States dollars, property or improvements to property, and foreign currencies. It should be noted that property credit figures were subject to revision after negotiation with recipient countries.

Grants—These represent aid to foreign governments for which no repayment was expected or for which repayment terms are currently indeterminate. In addition to the funds furnished by the Economic Cooperation Administration to the European Recovery Program, to Korea, and to the Chinese assistance program, grants also include: relief, civilian supplies, “lend-lease”, and other grants. Relief included supplies, services, and funds furnished directly by the United States Government or indirectly through international or national agencies. Funds and goods given through UNRRA are included in relief as are funds given through post-UNRRA Relief, Interim Aid, the Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees, the International Children’s Emergency Fund, the International Refugee Organization, the United Nations (Palestine refugee relief), and the governmental component of American Red Cross aid.

Civilian supplies included the value of incentive materials provided Germany and Japan, civilian supplies furnished by the United States Army to occupied areas (including Italy) to alleviate disease and unrest, and the issue of supplies by the United States Navy in the Pacific Islands.

“Lend-lease” included only such aid as was furnished on a grant basis. Among the programs included in the other grants category were aid to cultural and economic programs for the American Republics and China and financial aid provided to China, Greece, Turkey, and the Philippines. A substantial addition to this category was the $800+ million appropriated for the Military Defense Assistance Program in October. In general, earlier grants were made to rehabilitate national economies to the level of self-sufficiency for minimum needs, whereas relief funds were expended to sustain life and to prevent economic and physical retrogression.

[Page 754]

Table I.—Summary of U.S. Government foreign credits and grants: utilized, July 1, 1945, to December 31, 1949; and unutilized as of December 31, 1949, by area, and country

[In millions of dollars]

[Page 755]
Area and country Grand Total Credits plus Grants Utilized plus Unutilized
Utilized Unutilized Loans Property credits Grants
Total, All Areas 33,584 25,933 7,652 8,900 3,095 21,590
Total, Europe 25,091 20,122 4,969 6,938 2,304 15,849
Total, ERP Participants 23,483 18,539 4,944 6,755 1,994 14,734
Austria 716 649 68 13 12 691
Belgium and Luxembourg 679 542 137 192 39 440
Denmark 190 164 26 51 1 138
France 4,040 3,639 401 1,372 749 1,919
Germany (western) 3,046 2,624 421 5 121 2,920
Greece 1,211 1,086 125 15 97 1,100
Iceland 11 8 4 2 (*) 9
Ireland 112 67 45 86 - - - - - 25
Italy 2,175 1,846 329 198 209 1,767
Netherlands 1,030 803 227 352 81 597
Norway 239 177 62 85 30 124
Sweden 80 44 36 23 2 55
Switzerland 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2
Trieste 38 31 7 - - - - - - - - - - 38
Turkey 280 194 86 73 12 194
United Kingdom 6,925 6,486 439 4,098 641 2,186
Unallocated ERP 2,710 179 2,532 190 - - - - - 2,521
Total, Other Europe 1,608 1,583 25 183 310 1,115
Albania 20 20 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 20
Czechoslovakia 213 213 - - - - - 22 8 183
Finland 128 123 5 101 25 2
Hungary 18 18 - - - - - - - - - - 16 2
Poland 443 443 - - - - - 40 38 365
U. S. S. R 465 465 - - - - - - - - - - 223 243
Yugoslavia 320 300 20 20 1 299
Total, Latin America 563 398 165 482 43 38
Bolivia 37 21 16 35 - - - - - 2
Brazil 105 96 9 85 16 4
Chile 114 71 44 111 - - - - - 4
Colombia 42 25 17 40 1 1
Cuba 11 11 - - - - - 10 - - - - - - - - - -
Ecuador 23 10 13 21 (*) 2
Haiti 7 3 4 4 (*) 2
Mexico 137 109 28 132 - - - - - 5
Peru 8 8 - - - - - (*) 6 2
Uruguay 10 10 (*) 7 2 1
Venezuela 12 4 7 10 - - - - - 1
Other Latin America 10 9 1 4 (*) 6
Unallocated Latin America 46 22 25 21 18 7
Total, Asia 5,505 4,567 938 355 580 4,569
Afghanistan 21 - - - - - 21 21 - - - - - - - - - -
Burma 5 5 - - - - - - - - - - 5 - - - - -
China 1,894 1,753 141 99 146 1,649
India 45 45 - - - - - - - - - - 45 - - - - -
Indonesia 67 67 - - - - - - - - - - 63 4
Iran 37 37 - - - - - - - - - - 37 - - - - -
Isreal 100 7 93 100 - - - - - - - - - -
Japan 2,052 1,716 337 51 233 1,768
Korea (southern) 361 293 67 - - - - - 25 336
Philippines 700 568 133 70 9 621
Ryukyu Islands 89 49 40 - - - - - - - - - - 89
Saudi Arabia 22 18 4 14 8 - - - - -
Thailand 6 6 - - - - - - - - - - 6 - - - - -
Other Asia 3 3 - - - - - - - - - - 3 (*)
Unallocated Asia 103 - - - - - 103 - - - - - - - - - - 103
Canada 145 141 4 145 - - - - - - - - - -
Total, Africa 52 37 15 19 32 1
French Morocco 5 l 4 5 - - - - - - - - - -
Egypt 18 18 (*) 7 11 (*)
Liberia 23 15 8 4 19 - - - - -
Other Africa 6 3 2 3 2 1
Total, Oceania 17 17 - - - - - - - - - - 13 5
Australia 8 8 - - - - - - - - - - 8 (*)
Other Oceania 9 9 - - - - - - - - - - 4 4
Unallocated, International Organizations 645 552 93 65 - - - - - 580
Unallocated, All Areas 1,566 98 1,468 895 123 548
[Page 756]

Table II.—Foreign assistance programs of the U.S. Government, grants and credits utilized in the postwar period, by fiscal years, and unutilized as of Dec. 81, 1949

[In millions of dollars]

Program Utilized in the postwar period (fiscal years) Unutilized Dec. 31, 1949
Total Utilized 1950, first half 1949 1948 1947 1946
Total, All Programs 25,933 2,592 6,281 5,385 6,209 5,466 7,652
Total Grants 15,688 2,432 5,143 2,689 2,143 3,282 5,902
Economic Cooperation 5,292 1,707 3,380 205 - - - - - - - - 3,886
European Recovery Program 5,111 1,700 3,208 204 - - - - - - - - 3,706
Chinese aid 158 Cr. 9 165 1 - - - - - - - - 113
Korean aid 23 16 7 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 67
Civilian Supplies 4,170 482 1,074 1,177 694 744 475
Relief 3,700 45 131 949 1,381 1,194 51
UNRRA 2,577 - - - - - (Cr.*) 16 1,377 1,184 - - - - -
Post-UNRRA 300 - - - - - 3 296 - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Interim aid 557 - - - - - 24 534 - - - - - - - - - - - - -
International Children’s Emergency 60 2 25 33 - - - - - - - - 15
Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees 4 - - - - - - - - - - (Cr.*) 4 (*) - - - - -
International Refugee Organization 177 35 71 71 - - - - - - - - 36
United Nations (Palestine refugee relief) 15 7 8 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1
American Red Cross 10 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 10 - - - - -
Lend-Lease 1,213 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1,213 - - - - -
Other Grants 1,314 199 558 358 68 131 1,489
Inter-American aid 31 2 5 6 7 11 5
Chinese stabilization 120 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 120 - - - - -
Chinese military assistance 116 14 102 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 9
Chinese student assistance (*) (*) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4
Greek-Turkish aid 594 77 258 260 - - - - - - - - 76
Philippine rehabilitation 452 106 193 92 61 - - - - - 133
Mutual Defense Assistance Program - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1,264
Total Credits 10,244 160 1,138 2,696 4,066 2,184 1,750
Loan to United Kingdom 3,750 - - - - - - - - - - 1,700 2,050 - - - - - - - - - -
Export-Import Bank 2,532 77 214 598 1,085 558 1,319
Surplus property 1,365 3 46 292 529 495 - - - - -
Land-lease 1,347 3 4 46 191 1,104 4
European Recovery Program 902 47 855 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 226
Other 349 31 19 60 212 28 201
  1. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  2. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  3. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  4. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  5. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  6. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  7. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  8. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  9. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  10. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  11. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  12. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  13. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  14. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  15. Less than $500,000. [Footnote in the source text.]↩