War Economy

Contents

• • [covers]
  • Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45
  • [frontispiece]
  • [title page]
  • Preface
  • CHRONOLOGIES
  • ROUNDING
  • CURRENCY
  • Contents
  • List of Illustrations
  • List of Charts
  • Prelude: The War Effort
• • CHAPTER 1 — Pre-war Economy
    • Men Not Wanted
    • Employment Promotion
    • State Housing
    • Towards the Welfare State
    • Changes in Farming
    • Dependent or Independent Economy?
    • Diversification of the Economy
    • Financial Difficulties
    • Rising Retail Prices
    • Living Standards Rise and Fall
    • Pre-war Economic Crisis?
  • CHAPTER 2 — Preparation for War
    • The Need to Prepare
    • Failure to Prepare
    • Facilities for Pre-war Planning
    • Pre-war Manpower Planning
    • Proposals for a National Register
    • Reserved Occupations and Essential Industries
    • The Manpower Committee's Achievements
    • Supply Uncertainties
    • Stocks at the Outbreak of War
    • The Need for New Industries
    • Perishable Exports
      • [section]
      • ‘Pre-war action in the United Kingdom
      • ‘Pre-war action in New Zealand
      • ‘Commencement of Negotiations
    • Cool Storage Inadequate
    • Power Development Neglected
    • Earthmoving Equipment
    • Assessment of Pre-war Economic Planning
  • CHAPTER 3 — From Peace to War
    • The First Few Days of War
    • Controls over Production
    • Manpower
    • The Need for Co-ordination
    • Powers to Control Individuals
    • Import Controls
    • Influences on the Direction of Industrial Development
    • Rationing of Consumption Goods
    • Marketing
    • Financial Controls—Stabilisation
    • Geared for War Production
  • CHAPTER 4 — The Demands of War
    • Men for the Armed Forces
    • Overseas Service
    • Women for the Armed Forces
    • United States Forces in New Zealand
    • Finance: Two and a half Years of National Income Diverted to War Purposes
    • Demands on New Zealand Farming
    • Demands on Other Industries
    • Economic Impacts of War
  • CHAPTER 5 — Increasing Pressure on Manpower
    • Manpower for the Armed Forces
    • Reserved Occupations
      • [section]
      • Reserved Occupations
    • Civilian Labour Reserves Melt Away
    • Women Replace Men in Industry
    • Women's Organisations for War Work
    • Labour Losses on Farms
    • The Manpower Problem Extends to Secondary Industries
    • Other Industries
    • The Coming of Employment Controls
    • Manpower Registers
    • Direction of Labour
    • Manpower Fully Extended
  • CHAPTER 6 — Problems of Supply
    • Early Supply Difficulties
    • Terms of Trade
    • The Need for Reserve Stocks
    • Pre-war Clash of Supply and Overseas Exchange Policies
    • Immediate Reserve Requirements specified in March 1939
    • Pacific Defence Conference also deals with Reserve Supplies
    • Most Reserves Inadequate at Outbreak of War
    • The National Supply Committee's Contribution
    • The First Rationed Item – Motor Spirits
    • A Windfall – The Port Bowen
    • Supplies from the United Kingdom fall Away
    • Supplies from Australia
    • The Critical Supply Years, 1941 and 1942
    • Increasing Pressure on Local Industries
    • Pricing for New Zealand Production
    • Forward Estimates of Supply Requirements
    • Lend-Lease
    • Relief in 1943
    • Effects of Import Selection
    • Munitions and War Stores increase to Nearly Half of all Arrivals
    • Eking out Available Supplies — The Powers of the Controllers
    • Iron and Steel
    • Non-Ferrous Metals
    • Munitions
    • Medical Supplies
    • Rubber and Tyres
    • Wheat and Flour
    • Canadian Mutual Aid
    • Reclamation of Waste
    • The Vital Story of Supply
  • CHAPTER 7 — Manufacturing under War Conditions
    • Employment in Manufacturing
    • New Demands for Manufactured Goods
    • Difficulties in Non-Essential Industries
    • Use of Substitute Materials
    • Labour Shortages
    • Munitions Making
    • Military Clothing and Footwear
    • The Radio Industry fully Engaged on War Work
    • Shipbuilding and Repair
    • Tobacco and Cigarette Making
    • New Industries
    • Production Achievements
  • CHAPTER 8 — Wartime Farming
    • New Zealand as a Food Producer
    • Needs of the United Kingdom
    • Wartime Controls
    • Shipping and Storage Difficulties
    • Mechanisation of Farming
    • Falling Farm Labour Requirements
    • Hand Stripping on the Way Out
    • Armed Forces Recruitments have their Effect
    • Special Manpower Assistance to Farmers
    • Fertiliser Shortages
    • Declining Dairy Cow Numbers
    • Cheese Instead of Butter
    • A Bad Season in 1943–44 and the Introduction of Rationing
    • Meat Production at High Levels
    • Wool Production exceeds Requirements
    • Fruit Growing Declines
    • A Special Wartime Undertaking – Linen Flax
    • Other Wartime Changes
    • Achievements
  • CHAPTER 9 — Defence Construction
    • Pre-war Activities
    • Materials and Equipment Pre-war
    • Pre-war Defence Construction
    • War and Accelerated Construction of Defence Buildings
    • Early Wartime Controls
    • The Commissioner of Defence Construction
    • The Fifty-four Hour Week
    • Defence Construction Expenditure
    • Details of Public Works Expenditure
    • Defence Works by the Housing Construction Department
    • Construction Work in the Pacific
    • Special Measures in 1942–43
    • Housing Construction Resources Switched to War Work
    • Manpower
    • Timber: The Sawmilling Industry Under Pressure
    • Other Materials in Short Supply
    • The Crisis Passes
    • Review of Defence Construction Work
  • CHAPTER 10 — The Financial Cost of War
    • Up to Two-fifths of all Output Diverted to War Purposes
    • War Expenses Account
    • International Comparisons of War Costs
    • Finding the Money
    • Taxation
    • Borrowing in New Zealand
    • Sources of Internal Borrowing
    • The Memorandum of Security
    • Overseas Costs of War
    • War Expenses Account Compared with other Revenue and Expenditure Items
    • Diversion of Resources
  • CHAPTER 11 — The Quest for Financial Stability
    • Pre-war Price Control
    • Initial Wartime Steps to Stabilise Prices
    • The First General Wage Order, August 1940
    • The Economic Stabilisation Conference, September 1940
    • Government Action in August and September 1941
    • The Economic Stabilisation Committee, September 1941
    • The Second General Wage Order, April 1942
    • A Comprehensive Stabilisation Scheme—December 1942
    • Stabilised Wages
    • The Wartime Prices Index
    • Assessment of the Early Attempts at Stabilisation
  • CHAPTER 12 — Economic Stabilisation
    • The Economic Stabilisation Commission
    • Holding Prices and Costs
    • The Price Tribunal
    • Stabilisation Subsidies
    • The Role of Subsidies
    • The Wartime Prices Index
    • The Index Remains Stable
    • Problems for the Statistician
    • Other Price Changes
    • Wage Stabilisation
    • Dissatisfaction in 1944
    • Wages Break Away in 1945
    • Stabilised Prices and Wages
    • Stabilising Farm Incomes
    • The Dairy Industry
    • Long-term Contracts and Lump Sum Payments
    • The Meat Pool Account
    • The Meat Stabilisation Account
    • Evaluation of Farm Stabilisation Policy
    • The Wartime Prices Index as a Measure of Price Change
    • The Role of Fiscal Policy
    • Stabilisation Achievements
  • CHAPTER 13 — War Contracts
    • Urgency Leads to New Types of Contract
    • Cost-plus Contracts for Defence Construction
    • Special Contracts for Shipbuilding and Repair
    • Departmental Staff Difficulties
    • The Controller and Auditor-General Expects an Improvement
    • Increasing Urgency and Looser Contracts
    • The Auditor is More Critical
    • The Master Schedule
    • More Criticism of Wartime Contracts
    • Target Prices for Shipbuilding
    • Weaknesses in Other Contracts
    • Pressure of Work in the Radio Industry
    • Tighter Arrangements for Ship Repair Work
    • Attempts to Review War Contracts
    • High Profits
    • Incentives to Inefficiency
    • Slackening of Pressure Gives More Time to Check Contracts
    • What is to be Learned from Experience?
  • CHAPTER 14 — Trade and the Balance of Payments
    • Difficulties Before the War
    • Bulk Purchases of Farm Products
    • The Enemy Trading Emergency Regulations
    • Export Volumes
    • Restraint on Imports
    • Imports of Defence Materials
    • Shipping
    • Volume of Trade
    • Better Use of Shipping Space
    • Quicker Turn-round of Ships
    • Supplies to the United States Forces
    • Pricing Problems
    • Lump Sum Payments
    • Overseas Assets rise by £53 million in 1944 and 1945
    • Overseas Exchange Transactions
    • Receipts
    • Payments
    • Improved External Reserves
  • CHAPTER 15 — Transport Difficulties
    • Co-ordination Attempts Before the War
    • Waterfront Work
    • Pressure for Co-operative Stevedoring
    • The Waterfront Transport Control Board
    • Early Wartime Troubles on the Waterfront
    • The Waterfront Control Commission
    • A New Waterfront Award
    • Co-operative Contracting
    • ‘Spelling’
    • Extended Hours of Work
    • United States Supplies
    • Limited Success of Co-operative Contracting
    • Coastal Shipping
    • Shortages of Fish
    • New Zealand Railways
    • Railway Staff Shortages
    • Coal for Locomotives
    • Coal Mining
    • Shortages of Hard Coal
    • Transport of West Coast Coal
    • State Ownership of Mines
    • Open-cast Mining
    • Railways Reactions
    • Air Services
    • Road Transport
    • Petrol Rationing
    • Zoning and Rationalisation of Road Transport
    • Wartime Transport Arrangements
  • CHAPTER 16 — Fuel, Power, and Services for Production
    • New Sources of Power
    • Coal for Industry
    • Domestic Cooking and Heating
    • Coal Supplies
    • Electricity on the Upsurge
    • Faulty Pre-war Power Estimates
    • Early Restraints on the Use of Power
    • Power Difficulties for Manufacturers
    • Belated Hydro-Electric Development
    • Government Administrative and Other Services
    • Women in the Public Service
    • Communications
    • Local Authority Services
    • Levels of Production
  • CHAPTER 17 — Living and Working in a War Economy
    • Population Changes
    • Wartime Influences on Population Growth
    • Education
    • The Worker
    • Attitudes to Conscription
    • Conscription for Industry
    • The Maori War Effort
    • Accommodation for Directed Workers
    • Hours of Work
    • Paid Annual Holidays
    • Minimum Wages
    • Worker Effort
    • The Consumer
    • Marketing of Food
    • Egg Marketing
    • Shortages of Vegetables
    • Criticism of the Internal Marketing Division
    • Rationing
    • Tea and Sugar
    • Difficulties with Clothing
    • Rationing of New Zealand-Grown Foods
    • Rationing in the United Kingdom
    • Consumer Subsidies and Price Control
    • The Motorist
    • The Black Market
    • Racing
    • The Impact of American Forces in New Zealand
    • The People at War
  • CHAPTER 18 — Easing the Strain
    • Peak Mobilisation
    • Tension Reduces in the Pacific
    • The Strain on Civilian Manpower Worsens
    • The Manpower Dilemma
    • A Change in Manpower Priorities
    • Food Crisis in Britain
    • Pacific Division Becomes a Token Force
    • Manpower Needs for Industry
    • Farm Manpower Needs Overestimated
    • Public Criticism of the Size of the Home Forces
    • The End of the Pacific Division
    • Labour Shortages in the Last Year of War
  • CHAPTER 19 — From War to Peace
    • General Demobilisation
    • Gratuities
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Reinstatement of Employees
    • Manpower Controls Revoked
    • The Rehabilitation Board
    • Trade Training
    • University Education for Ex-servicemen
    • Settlement on the Land
    • Setting up in Business
    • Assistance with Housing
    • Successful Rehabilitation
    • Termination of Reciprocal Aid
    • Disposal of War Assets
    • Bulk Purchases of Food Continue
    • Disposal of Wool Stocks
    • Gifts to Britain
    • Economic Planning—Organisation for National Development
  • CHAPTER 20 — Recovery and Development
    • Economic Recovery
    • Suppressed Inflation
    • Rapid Currency Depreciation
    • More Stable Prices from 1955
    • Full Employment
    • Depletion of the Labour Force
    • Underworked Facilities for Employment Promotion
    • New and Increased Social Security Benefits
    • Bank Advance Controls
    • Increased Imports
    • An Attempt to Remove import Controls
    • The 1958 Budget
    • Import Controls Continue
    • The Rising Cost of Invisibles
    • Subsidised Agriculture and Dumped Surpluses
    • The European Economic Community
    • Direction of Trade
    • New Zealand Farming Developments
    • Farm Industry Reserves
    • Backlogs of Construction Work
    • Electricity Shortages Worsen
    • Transport Developments
    • Economic Policy Co-ordination
    • Economic Development
  • Noteworthy Events Since The War
  • List of Tables and Charts
  • Appendix I — STATISTICAL TABLES
  • Appendix II — ITEMS IN THE WARTIME PRICES INDEX
  • Bibliography
    • [section]
    • Studies of New Zealand at War
    • Other Histories and Surveys of New Zealand
    • New Zealand Journals, Annual Reports, etc.
    • British War Histories
    • United States War Histories
    • Other War Histories
    • Other Books
    • Other Publications
  • Index
• Editorial Advisory Panel

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About this page...

Title: War Economy

Author: Baker, J. V. T.

Publication details: Historical Publications Branch, 1965, Wellington

Part of: The Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–1945

This text is the subject of: ‘Something of Them Is Here Recorded’: Official History in New Zealand

Keywords: New Zealand World War II History

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