Billion Dollar Gift and Mutual Aid

The Billion Dollar Gift and Mutual Aid were financial incentives instituted by the Canadian minister C. D. Howe during World War II. == Background == Due to its expenditure on war materiel, Britain lacked gold reserves and U.S. dollars to pay for existing and future orders with Canadian industry. At the same time, following expansion, Canadian industry was dependent on British contracts and before the war had had a positive balance of trade with the UK, but with the establishment of Lend-Lease, the UK secured future orders with the US. The Billion Dollar Gift was given to the UK in January 1942, coupled with a C$700 million non-interest bearing loan, both anticipated to last just over a year.

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