The German reparations funds will cover half of the Israel development budget for the next four years, Hillel Dan, director of the Israel Government’s reparations corporation, said here yesterday. He reported that the development budget for the next four years will come to 550,000,000 Israel pounds.
Projects to be financed by the development program, he continued, will make it possible for Israel to save in the next four years $120,000,000 both by avoiding certain imports and increasing exports. The present deficit in Israel’s balance of trade, Mr. Dan said, is $200,000,000 annually. After three years, he predicted, Israel will be able to close this gap.
Reparations funds will be invested principally in electrical installations, land and sea transportation, a Negev railroad, and other basic industries. Mr. Dan said that raw materials will be imported not only from Germany but from other countries through the reparations agreement. All formal arrangements for the first delivery of the reparations goods will be completed this week and by the end of May, 1954, Israel should receive some $65,000,000 worth of German goods.
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