| Admin History | The estimates, covering a large part of the Overseas Investments of the United Kingdom outstanding in the years 1938 to 1948, were compiled in the Statistics Office of the Bank of England. They were designed, in the main, to provide a continuation of the series of studies, covering the years 1926 to 1938, which were prepared under the direction of Lord Kindersley and were published in the Economic journal each year between 1929 and 1939. In 1940, Lord Kindersley had collected much of the material for 1939 but he was unable, in the circumstances of the time, to carry the work to completion. Later he handed over his material to the Bank, to assist their study of Balance of Payments problems, and facilitated the continued co-operation of the institutions which had formerly supplied him with information. The Bank for their part, agreed to prepare and publish complete estimates covering the war years similar to Lord Kindersley's earlier figures, and thus ensure the maintenance of a valuable statistical investigation. The continuance of the work was only been made possible by the voluntary assistance of a long list of registrars, banks, issuing houses and public companies of all kinds.
In conformity with Lord Kindersley's work, the Bank's estimates covered the nominal capital value of, and the interest and dividends distributed on, the overseas investments of U.K. residents through the medium of securities quoted on, unofficially dealt in, or otherwise known to the London Stock Exchange. These securities fell into three main classes, viz. the loans of central and local governments, shares and debentures of U.K.-registered companies operating entirely or almost entirely abroad and those of companies registered abroad. The Bank was also able to widen the list of securities studied by Lord Kindersley by including a large block of U.S. and Canadian dollar securities not quoted in the Stock Exchange Official List or recorded in the Stock Exchange Official Year.
[The information above is a revision of the text that appears on p.1 of EID6/1]
Until 1960, the brochures were issued with the Bank's Annual Reports (ADM 2). Between 1961 and 1964 the estimates were published in a modified form in articles in the June issues of the Quarterly Bulletin (EID 5). After 1964 the estimates were no longer provided separately but were incorporated in the annual articles in 'the United Kingdom's External Assets and Liabilities' in the Quarterly Bulletin. Information was also given in regular government publications relating to the United Kingdom's balance of payments. |