76  BREPORT ON COOPERATION IN AMERICAN EXPORT TRADE,
trol of their domestic and foreign business. (See the plate-glass
study above.)
(¢) The international shipping agreements also regulate a part
of German trade, which was formerly participated in by foreign
combinations. (See under “International combinations,” below.)
(d) The Nobel Dynamité Trust, which is of English origin, formerly
 competed on the German market with the local producers.
Before the outbreak of the European war, the German and English
producers had reached an understanding which satisfactorily disposed
 of the German trade. (See under “Other German cartels,”
above.
The combinations above mentioned are only a few of the foreign
cartels whose operations in Germany have been curtailed by international
 agreements and contracts. Many ‘others are known to
exist, but literature concerning their operations and methods is
rarely published.
The German control of goods imported from the colonies—Another
 movement which restricts the operation of foreign syndicates
and combinations in Germany is the tendency of local associations
of manufacturers (such as cocoa, rubber, etc.) to control the importation
 and consumption of the products which they use. Since goods
of this character are imported from abroad and from colonial possessions,
 their German sale can be controlled by either buying up
properties in other parts of the world, or by establishing business
acilities abroad. It is generally understood that efforts have been
made along both of these lines by German associations. Although
these efforts may not have succeeded in eliminating foreign competition
 in raw products, yet it is safe to say that they have retarded
and restricted such competition. The German efforts in foreign rubber
 districts is a sample of what has been done outside of Germany
to assist its internal manufactures. The lack of organization by
sellers of colonial goods has assisted this movement. For instance,
the lack of concerted opposition in Brazil has made Hamburg a
great distributing point of coffee, which distribution might take
place in Brazil itself if the producers were sufficiently organized.
All of these tendencies have enabled German manufacturers to procure
 raw material cheaply and to exclude and overcome imperfectly
organized combinations from the producing regions.
Operations of American trusts and cartels.—The best examples of
combinations of foreign manufacturers operating in Germany are
the large American institutions, such as the Standard Oil Co., the
American Tobacco Co., the International Harvester Co., the American
 Radiator Co., ete. These institutions are not exactly foreign,
since they emanate from the United States itself. The success of
their German enterprises has been generally commented upon by
the American press and is well known to the companies themselves.
Consequently, thorough investigations will not be made of the German
 management of American enterprises, but brief summaries of
results are respectfully submitted.
The operations of the Standard Oil Co. have long been a subject
of discussion in Germany. In fact, the Standard &amp;il Co. has presented
 a problem which has occupied the minds of German legislators.
 Even as early as 1902 a book was published by Dr. Rudolf