70. Memorandum From the Director of the Office of International Financial and Development Affairs (Corbett) to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs (Kalijarvi)1

SUBJECT

  • Memorandum from Mr. Holland to Secretary re “Loan Policy in Latin America”2

I would not clear the attached memorandum for the following reasons: [Page 335]

1.
Bank lending does not follow a steady monthly or quarterly pattern. Two or three significant loans in the next month or so would alter Holland’s conclusion.
2.
We know Mr. Waugh’s intentions and we know he believes he is under no strictures from the Treasury with respect to a vigorous Bank. Mr. Burgess’ call should not be taken as the gospel.
3.
Bank lending depends in part upon the interest and initiative of the borrowers.
4.
Three loans have been slowed down, each with some measure of State Department intervention (Holland’s to be precise)—a $24 million loan to a Brazilian railway, a $35 million loan to Brazilian steel mill and a $25 million loan to a Colombian steel mill. Further, Holland succeeded in getting additional grant money for Guatemala which made a Bank loan to the Inter-American Highway unnecessary.
5.
The memo has too panicky a note and the recommendation would not help our relations with the Bank or the Treasury nor would it, in my opinion, alter the probable course of events in Eximbank lending.

  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 103–XMB/10–1955. Confidential. The source text bears the following handwritten notation initialed by Kalijarvi: “This should go back to Holland for him to take up with me.”
  2. In this memorandum, October 19, Holland contended that a major increase in Export-Import Bank lending to Latin America was necessary. Although the source next indicates that Holland’s memorandum was an attachment, it was not found attached to the source text. Document 81 contains a quote from the October 19 memorandum.