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5  '
Industrial Production Declines
Reflecting the year-end holidays and ad-
verse seasonal factors such as frozen water-
ways, stalled transportation, damaged equip-
ment and    forced  shutdowns, industrial
production in the US Zone declined in De-.
cember to an estimated 39 percent of the
1936 average from 44 percent in November,
according to data compiled by the Economics
Division, OMGUS.-
Declines in production were reported in
the following industries: precision instru-
ments and optics, stones and earth, electrical
equipments ceramics, textiles. Production of
light bulbs, radio receivers, and storage bat-
teries showed small increases. Truck.output
rose as partially finished trucks, delayed by
lack of parts in November, were fully as-
sembled. Iron and steel production remained
virtually unchanged with increased output of
pig iron and ingot steel offsetting declines in
steel mill products and gray iron castings.
Coal mining in the US Zone heldW up well,
average daily output of brown and pech coal
advancing to new monthly highs. For Ger-
many as a whole, the production of coal
during December was described as "goo.
Gains during first three weeks of the mnt
were so great that neither the subsequent
cold nor frost, disabled machines nor dis-
organized transport, could keep hard coal
from rising to a new monthly peak. Produc-
tion of brown coal in Germany declined
about five percent in December to:13,258,000
tons.
France continued to receive the largest
single share of coal exported from Germany.
In the fourth quarter, leadings for export to
France (including' North Africa) averaged
214,000 tons monthly, 29 percent of all ex-
ports (except Austria). This compared with
an average of 314,000 tons in the previous
quarter when its share of the total was al-
most 31 percent. Luxembourg     received
121,000 tons monthly, followed by   the
Netherlands' 110,000 tons at
rk's
8u,u   tons. Other receiving countries in-
cluded Belgium, Italy, and Norway.
In the US Zone, December receipts for
German civilian requirements from US Army
stocks of petroleum, oil, and. lubricants,
amounted to 22,500 tons, a decline of 30 per-
cent from November. Soviet representatives
engaged in reparations and demolition work
in, the US Zone have been provided with
coupons for 40,000 liters of gasoline and
750 liters of motor. oil. Reimbursement in
kind will be made from POL stocks in the
Soviet Zone. The original motor fuel alloca-
tion for Soviet representatives, made'some
months ago,' has been settled in full by ship-
ments'from the Soviet Zone.
During 1946, US Zone users of rolled
steel - the Reichsbahn, waterways, bridge
builders, the US Army, farm   machinery
plants, truck  manufacturers,' aniti-friction
bearing plants, and other steel consumers -
had' available about 300,000 tons of rolled
steel. Of this total, about 43 percent came
from US Zone rolling mills, about 55 percent
from British Zone mills, and two percent
from French Zone mills.
Bavarian "Hit Parade"
One of the Radio Munich's most popular
programs. "Die Zehn der Woche" (The Ten
of the Week) is patterned after America's
long popular "Hit Parade" with similar
music and methods of presentation. The
American hits selected by listeners and re-
quested by letter are played each Thursday
at 2130 hours.
Started in November 1945, the program
has grown to an outstanding weekly feature,
drawing',an average of four to five thousand
letters, postcards, and telegrams a month.
The mailbag is enlarged substantially, how-
ever, when American musical films are play-
ing in Munich, sometimes reaching seven
thousand requests a month.
30
rats~W