1
Demand for and supply of domestic resources
1.4
(paragraph
net
The growth rate of the supply of labour
4.3) has slowed down under the influence of less
immigration and of a falling labour force participation rate.
The growth rate of the demand for labour has also been slowing
down (paragraph 4.4). Statistics are likely to show that
unemployment might have been slightly higher than in the fourth quarter of last year (paragraphs 4.1 and 4.2), an increase that is almost certainly seasonal.
1.5
relative
shift
in
the
sector to
the fourth
did not
Most probably, the
distribution of
of employment from
from the manufacturing
the tertiary services sector, which started in
quarter of 1981 when manufacturing employment increase, has continued into the first quarter of
(paragraph 4.5). There is no information yet to assess to what extent wages for manufacturing workers have been affected
(paragraph 4.10).
1.6
this year
In the land and property markets, prices generally continued to fall (paragraphs 5.4 to 5.6 and paragraph 5.11).
The stock market was generally bearish (paragraph 3.15), reflecting conditions in the land and property markets.
Inflation and the monetary aggregates
1.7
As the demand for domestic resources and the supply
of them are such that their influence on the rate of increase
in prices must be favourable, the rate of
rate of inflation eased in
the first quarter (paragraph 6.1). The easing of inflation elsewhere in the world, coupled with the strengthening of the exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar (paragraph 3.14) partly result of stable local interest rates (paragraph 3.13),
also contributed.
2
/1.8 The