CONFIDENTIAL
GRS 450
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG 12075OZ OCT 83
TO IMMEDIATE F C O
TELEGRAM NUMBER 1513 OF 12 OCTOBER
FOR CLIFT FROM BRAY
YOUR TELNO 1030 OF 11 OCTOBER
GI
PRESS REPORTS ON FINANCIAL MEASURES
(66
TOP COPY 100/7
HKK
20 OCT 1983
THE GOVERNMENT WAS ASKED LAST SATURDAY (OCTOBER B) BY ''WIDE-ANGLE'' (MONTHLY MAGAZINE PUBLISHED MID-MONTH) WHETHER
MR. CHARLES GOODHART HAD COME TO HONG KONG AND HAD HAD DISCUSSIONS
WITH THE SECRETARY FOR MONETARY AFFAIRS.
THE GOVERNMENT REPLY WAS BANKERS, INCLUDING OFF ICHALS FROM
THE BANK OF ENGLAND, ARE FREE TO COME TO HONG KONG AS THEY WISH. CONTACTS BETWEEN INDEVIDUAL BANKERS AND THE GOVERNMENT ARE CONFIDENT ÞAL.**
2. REPORTS ABOUT IMMINENT ACTION BY THE GOVERNMENT TO STRENGTHEN THE HONG KONG DOLLAR HAVE BEEN CIRCULATUNG AND THERE HAS BEEN SPECULATION SINCE LAST WEEK THAT THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL WAS TO HOLD AN EMERGENCY SESSION TO APPROVE NEW MEASURES.
3. KUNG SHEUNG EVENING NEWS IN A FRONT PAGE ARTICLE YESTERDAY (OCTOBER 11) QUOTING A RELIABLE SOURCE STATED THAT LEGCO WAS TO HOLD AN EMERGENCY MEETING EITHER YESTERDAY EVENING OR TODAY. NT SAND THERE WOULD BE THREE MEASURES: RAISING THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENT FOR RESERVES HELD BY BANKS, DOUBLING THE MINIMUM CAPITAL OF FOREWGN BANKS, AND A REQUIREMENT FOR NOTE ISSUING BANKS TO HOLD FOREIGN CURRENCIES AGAINST THE ISSUE OF HONG KONG DOLLAR BANK-NOTES.
THIS REPORT WAS CARRIED AGAIN IN TODAY'S KUNG SHEUNG DAHLY NEWS BUT WAS NOT PICKED UP BY OTHER PAPERS.
4. THE HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL HOWEVER REPORTED TODAY (FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE PRESS) THAT THERE HAD BEEN STRONG RUMOURS IN THE MARKET THAT MR. GOODHART HAD COME TO HONG KONG TO GIVE HIS VIEWS ON RESCUE MEASURES. THROUGH LONG-DISTANCE TELEPHONE, MR. GOODMART WOULD ONLY CONF LRM WITH THE PAPER THAT HE HAD RECENTLY COME TO HONG KONG TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE MONEY MARKET AND THAT HE WAS INTERESTED IN RECENT DEVELOPMENTS. HE WOULD NOT SAY WHETHER THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT HAD INVITED HIM TO GIVE RECOMMENDATIONS. THE PAPER ADDED THAT THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY TOO WOULD NOT COMMENT ON THE MATTER.
ここ
/ 5. TODAY'S