FRANCE: Billions for Consolidation

French and foreign investors scrambled competitively in a buying orgy, last week, when they were finally permitted by white whiskered, confidence inspiring Prime Minister Raymond Poincaré to snap up the 5% bonds of his eagerly awaited Consolidation Loan.

Within two days ten billion francs ($400,000,000) of new money flowed in; and six billion francs in other government securities were exchanged for the new issue. Since this latter process—”consolidation” of previous higher interest bearing securities into the new loan—was the end chiefly sought by Prime Minister Poincaré, he announced on the second day of scrambling that no further cash subscriptions would be accepted, but welcomed further conversion which continued steadily all week.

As announced by M. Poincaré, prior to his recent sweeping victory at the general election (TIME, May 7), the present Conversion Loan is a firm preliminary step toward eventual restoration of the stabilized franc to a gold basis.

Encouraging to the Prime Minister was an announcement made at Vichy, last week, before a convention of French hotel tycoons, that their experts “conservatively estimate” the total sum which will be spent in France by U. S. tourists during 1928 at six billion francs ($240,000,000).