at end-March 1971, totalling approximately $70,000 per month (exclud- ing the rental income from the Queen's Road property, which no longer forms part of the estate). With the sizeable reduction in the principal and interest on the Government loans, income now exceeds outgoings, including interest, by about $230,000 per annum. This surplus will con- tinue to be used to reduce the overdue interest and principal on the Government loans. The Official Receiver, as Trustee in this case, also has a major interest in a limited company running a hotel in the New Territories. Under the supervision of the Trustee, this hotel made a net profit in 1970 of about $106,000 ($39,000 more than the previous year) before payment of interest to Government on a mortgage loan.
134. As in previous years, the Official Receiver records his apprecia- tion of the valuable advice and assistance readily given at all times by the members of the Committee of Inspection.
Official Receiver in Bankruptcy Account
135. The receipts and payments for the year and the assets and liabilities as at 31st March 1971 are set out in Table XXVII. Assets of bankrupt estates produced $1,829,014, and $181,023 was received in bank interest. Payments to preferential creditors and dividends to unsecured creditors amounted to $28,203 and $2,490,168 respectively, making a total of $2,518,371. Expenses of administration of bankrupt estates absorbed $337,889. At the end of the year the assets held by the Official Receiver on account of bankruptcies totalled $9,964,111, including $7,038,000 being the balance of the Government loans for the Ming Tak Bank, $2,234,808 held in respect of undistributed assets of bankrupt estates, and $169,610 in respect of unclaimed dividends.
Companies Liquidation Account
136. The receipts and payments for the year and the assets and liabilities as at 31st March 1971 are set out in Table XXVIII. This Table does not include details of The Canton Trust and Commercial Bank, Limited, for which a separate account is kept (Table XXVI). Assets of companies in compulsory liquidation produced $1,488,735, and payments to preferential creditors, dividends to unsecured creditors and returns of capital to contributories amounted to $131,234, $645,057 and $225,250 respectively. In one case, excess money totalling $205,190 contributed
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