THE WHITE HOUSE
                                
                                 WASHINGTON
 
MEMORANDUM
 
TO:       THE PRESIDENT
 
FROM:     MR. LUBIN
 
SUBJECT:  MERCHANT VESSEL LOSSES
 
     The attached chart shows the merchant vessel 
situation from March 1 to April 5.
 
     It should be noted that the losses reported
for the week ending April 5 were smaller than for any
week in the 5-week period. On the other hand, new con-
struction was higher than for any week in the period.
 
     The total losses for the five weeks, as shown
on the chart, amounted to 1,195,000 deadweight tons. This
is an average loss of approximately 239,000 tons per week.
 
     The total new construction in the United States, 
Great Britain and Canada for the five weeks was 456,000 tons,
or an average of 91,000 tons per week.
 
     The total net loss for the five weeks was 739,000
tons, or an  average of approximately 148,000 tons per week.