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    "localId": "486499377",
    "label": "Report, Central Intelligence Agency, Spain, Situation Report 11",
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    "contentType": "document",
    "title": "Report, Central Intelligence Agency, Spain, Situation Report 11",
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        "President's Secretary's Files (Truman Administration)",
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    "productionDates": [
        {
            "day": 15,
            "logicalDate": "1948-11-15",
            "month": 11,
            "year": 1948
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    "seq": 49,
    "pageIndex": 0,
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    "url": "https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/presidential-libraries/truman/hst-psf/602196/875502/875502-01-049.tif",
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    "ocrText": "8. FOREIGN TRADE.\nDespite the country's advantageous geographic position, the foreign trade of Spain,\nin proportion to its population, is materially smaller than that of most European coun-\ntries. In 1935, its exports, as officially reported, were equal to $4.53 per capita and its\nimports to $6.82, compared with $14.47 and $19.58, respectively for France, $40.27 and\n$43.33 for Belgium, and $3.07 and $2.85 for Poland. Nevertheless, certain of Spain's\nproducts, including cork, olives, olive oil, pyrites, and mercury play an important role\nin world commerce. Various industries depend on exports for most of their income,\nincluding those producing citrus fruits, potash, salt, lead, grapes and wine, and iron\nore.\nSpanish foreign trade after 1939 underwent far-reaching changes. The national\nself-sufficiency program and exchange difficulties contributed to a decline in both the\nvolume and value of imports; lack of shipping facilities and controls instituted by\nbelligerent countries reduced the volume of exports. The volume of exports reached\na wartime peak in 1943; since then exports have declined materially. A variety of\nfactors contributed to this decline, including reduced demand for strategic commodities,\npoor harvests of olives, oranges, and nuts in 1945-46, and the closing for two years\n(1946-1948) of the French-Spanish border. In general, the value of exports in 1947\nwas about double the average in 1931-35, owing to the rise in world prices and in\nSpanish prices particularly; on a quantum basis, exports were equal to only about half\nthe volume in that period.\na.\nBalance of Trade.\nOrdinarily the value of Spanish imports has exceeded that of exports by about\n25 percent. Insofar as merchandise trade is concerned, Spain usually has been in a\ndebtor position with regard to its total balance of payments. The most important\noffsetting credit items in the country's international payments formerly were emigrants'\nremittances, tourist expenditures, and shipping services. Emigrant remittances have\nall but ceased during the past year or two and recent unfavorable restrictions on\ntourists in the way of monetary controls have discouraged travel of foreigners in Spain.\nb.\nComposition of Trade.\nSpain's exports consist mainly of agricultural products and mineral ores.\nDuring World War II, there was a substantial increase in the relative importance of\nexports of ores and related materials because of their strategic value. The traditional\npattern has now been restored. Some 20 articles account for the greater part of the\nexport trade, as follows: oranges (about 25 percent of the total value), grapes, raisins,\nand wines (12 percent), and olive oil (6 percent).\nThe composition of imports is more varied, consisting of a diversified group\nof raw materials and semi-manufactured items essential to Spanish industries, and\nan even wider range of manufactured articles. Six groups of commodities-namely,\ntextiles, food products, fertilizers, fuels, automobiles and machinery-usually account\nfor more than half of the total imports. The war also had a marked effect on the\npattern of Spain's imports. Restrictions and shortages in world supply combined\nSECRET\n36"
}