of the entrepôt trade with China has distorted the import scene to
the extent that imports from Britain for local consumption
have continued to improve we now have a 6.1% share of Hong Kong's
retained imports.
With the exception of relatively small duty on alcoholic
liquor, tobacco and petroleum products, Hong Kong has no customs
duties or exchange controls. In such a free trade environment
there is no structural impediment to greater UK sales to the market,
although it must be recognised that Britain will never be a major
supplier of food and fuels (which coming mostly from China and
Singapore account for almost a quarter of total imports) or even
of raw materials (which come mostly from Japan). It is primarily in
the engineering and transport equipment categories where Britain
must seek to increase its share of the market. We could also do
better as suppliers of consumer goods and of raw materials (fabrics
and yarn) to the dominant clothing industry.
There is traditional preference for British goods, the
quality of which is seldom criticised; British standards are
usually specified; there is a large expatriate British community
with representatives in key posts in Government, commerce and
industry; English is the main commercial language; and British law
governs local commercial transactions. In theory, therefore,
British firms with the capacity to be competitive in price and
delivery, should be able to increase their share of the market
provided they offer a real commitment. It was because their senior
management directed adequate resources to the market that British
contractors won the main electrical and mechanical engineering
contracts for the new underground railway (the MTR) in 1976 to
demonstrate that despite distance they could compete in Hong Kong
against the strong competition of the Japanese. This success was
sustained/...