TEXTILES
20. I CANNOT CLAIM
HAPPILY ENOUGH THAT THE
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST HONG KONG IN THE TEXTILES SECTOR
HAS AS YET HAD ANYTHING LIKE THE SAME SORT OF BAD EFFECT.
AS IS MANIFEST FROM THE FOOTWEAR STATISTICS I HAVE TOUCHED
UPON ABOVE. SINCE HONG KONG HOWEVER AS YOU WILL KNOW
DEPENDS FOR 50% OF ITS TOTAL EXPORT TRADE ON ITS IMPORTANT
TEXTILE INDUSTRY,
MUCH SMALLER DEGREES OF DAMAGE IN
RELATIVE TERMS CAN ACTUALLY BE OF GREATER ABSOLUTE
IMPORTANCE.
ANY FUTURE FOR HONG KONG WITH A DECLINING
TEXTILE INDUSTRY WOULD BE HARD TO CONTEMPLATE.
21. THE TEXTILES LABOUR FORCE OF SOME 250,000 WORKERS
REPRESENTS 40% OF THE TOTAL LABOUR FORCE OF HONG KONG 'S
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES.
EVEN IN THIS INDUSTRY 5,000
(OUT OF THE LESS THAN 6,000 FACTORIES ON RECORD IN 1973)
EMPLOYED LESS THAN 50 WORKERS EACH.
IN THE EARLY MON THS.
OF 1974, ORDERS IN THE TEXTILE TRADE WERE WELL BELOW THOSE.
FOR THE COMPARABLE PERIOD OF 1973 AND LABOUR HAS RECENTLY
HAD TO BE LAID-OFF IN THE WEAVING SECTOR.
22.
FROM A COMPARISON OF THE LIMITED EEC IMPORT
STATISTICS AVAILABLE TO US A DIVERSION OF TRADE IN SOME
OF OUR MOST SIGNIFICANT TEXTILE LINES TO OUR NEAR COMPETITOR
/SOUTH KOREA,
2.