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exchange service altogether. In Kowloon City, however, it was reported that people had to pay an extra $5 when exchanging for coins up to the value of a hundred dollars. Some banks seemed to
have restricted their exchange service to regular patrons only, thus leading to the occurrence of
some unhappy incidents between tellers and some members of the public.
(c) Operators of small stores had adjusted the prices of their goods to a round sum for example, changing the price from $1.80 to $2.00 to avoid having to give small change. Hawkers, too, had resorted to inducing their customers to buy more
on the pretext that they had no change. The tendency of having to overpay for goods and services annoyed the public generally.
(a)
There were allegations that banks, in order to obtain supplies of small coins, were paying special 'service charges' to the staff of the public transport companies. Store-operators claimed that they had to resort to paying the station inspectors of the bus or ferry companies commissions in order to obtain small changes. They also claimed that such transactions could only be made if they were on friendly terms with the inspectors.
(e) Evidence of a shortage of coins was not lacking.
Some PLBS had put up signs asking commuters to
- tender exact fares. Newspaper vendors too, had
asked for exact amounts. Some restaurants and
department stores - e.g. Pak Hop Restaurant and Chung Kiu Emporium Ltd. in Mong Kok had been using stamps in lieu of 10-cent coins.
Discreet sounding-out of some banks tend to confirm
that the shortage of coins was real -
Chung Nam Bank: Used to have no problem in getting small coins from the Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, but there were difficulties during the
last few months.
/ Hang
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