French Capital, Gdynia, and the Position of Polish Coal on International Markets in the Interwar Period

Jerzy Łazor ()
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Jerzy Łazor: Warsaw School of Economics

Chapter Chapter 6 in Fuelling the World Economy, 2023, pp 99-121 from Palgrave Macmillan

Abstract: Abstract This chapter analyses the radical reorientation of Polish coal exports in the interwar period, and the role of French capital and authorities in the process. Until 1925, Poland’s coal sector catered primarily to Central European markets via rail. A trade war with Germany pushed Warsaw to search for new markets overseas, making Baltic ports the new locus of exports. Initially the mineral was sent through Danzig, but by the 1930s the new Polish harbour in Gdynia dominated shipping. This change was facilitated by French companies, which built the port, and French authorities, which supported the project. The success of Gdynia in the late 1930s in coal sales also depended on new railways connecting the Baltic to Polish coalfields, likewise built and financed by the French. These significant outlays were motivated by Paris’ security considerations, and were pushed for by the Ministry of War. The French also had significant holdings in the Polish coal sector, dating back to before World War I. They were not a major factor in Quai d’Orsay’s infrastructural decisions, but, since the companies relied on exports for dividends for much of the interwar period, they had significant influence on Polish coal sales, often through dumping.

Keywords: Coal; Coal production; International trade; Corporate strategies; French foreign investments (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pal:psmchp:978-3-031-32565-6_6

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-32565-6_6

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