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Direct British investment
commercial benefits to the U.K.
in manufacturing industry is very small (about £14 m in
1974) and much smaller than similar investment by the
United States (£40m) and Japan (£30 m) but there
are important British financial and commercial investments
for which no figures are available. The British share
of the Hong Kong market for imports (£157m in 1975) was
only 6% of the total as compared with Japan (21%)
and the United States (14%). Hong Kong accounted for
only 0.8% of total British exports and is declining
as a percentage of the total. Hong Kong exports to
Britain in 1975 were valued at £307m, 9% of total Hong
Kong exports, producing a deficit for Britain in the
balance of trade of £150m. A Hong Kong estimate of the
net value to Britain of the trade in invisibles is £129
annually; but the Central Statistical Office are unable
to confirm this because of conceptual and practical
difficulties in producing detailed balance of payments
estimates on a bilateral basis. The United Kingdom gains
special advantages from the connection with Hong Kong:
it is an important bargaining counter in air services
negotiations and it is a centre for intelligence of major
importance in our intelligence with the Americans.
enjoys substantial advantages in the Hong Kong market over
most of her competitors. The administrative structure
is British;
Britain
the main langage of government and commerce
Page 24s English; the pat248f2ential sections pagesofmunity
have strong educational, financial and intellectual links
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