Trade with Britain
CONFIDENTIAL
22.
Textiles still account for a high though declining
percentage of total exports (about 45%). Well over
a half of Hong Kong's exports go to three markets (United
States, United Kingdom and Western Germany) but sales to
some other countries in Western Europe are rapidly increasing.
Hong Kong consistently imports more than it exports but
in recent years the adverse balance has been more than
made up by inflows of capital and by earnings from shipping,
insurance and banking services and from tourism.
23. Hong Kong trade with the United Kingdom has in past
years shown a considerable imbalance in Hong Kong's favour.
For the first half of 1970, however, the United Kingdom
had a surplus of over £1 million in exports to Hong Kong.
The British market, which took approximately 14% of
Hong Kong's domestic exports in 1969, is important to
the Colony not only because of its size but also because
of the benefits of Commonwealth preferences. These provide
Hong Kong industry with the opportunity to try out new
products in a "domestic market" which is lacking in
Hong Kong United Kingdom exports to Hong Kong in 1969
totalled £82m. (or 8% of all Hong Kong imports). Our
exports, while showing an increase in value in the last few years, represent a continually shrinking share of the Hong Kong market, of which Japan (23%), China (18%) and
the USA (13%) hold the largest shares. The main British
exports are machinery, non-metallic mineral manufactures,
textile yarns and transport equipment.
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CONFIDENTIAL