+
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1980
+ BRITISH CONSULTANTS ARE ALSO EXTREMELY ACTIVE ON MAJOR DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN POWER, AIR, RAIL AND ROAD TRANSPORT.
THEY ARE ALSO MAKING A BIG CONTRIBUTION TO THE MASSIVE CONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME CURRENTLY BEING UNDERTAKEN BY THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT. (WORTH 5.5 BILLION HK DOLLARS IN 1979).
+THERE IS ONE FURTHER ADVANTAGE WHICH NOT ONLY MAKES HONG KONG AN ACTIVE AREA FOR INVESTMENT AND EXPORTS BUT POSITIVELY CONTRIBUTES TO THE DYNAMICS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH. QUITE UNIQUELY AMONG NEWLY INDUSTRIALISED COUNTRIES HONG KONG IS AN OPEN, FREE TRADING MARKET WITHOUT EXCHANGE CONTROLS, IMPORT DUTIES OR IMPORT CONTROLS.
+ INDEED HONG KONG IS ONE OF THE BEST ARGUMENTS AROUND FOR THE RETENTION OF AN OPEN TRADING SYSTEM. +
MONEY SUPPLY AND FINANCIAL STATISTICS FOR SEPTEMBER
*****
STATISTICS PUBLISHED TODAY SHOW A FURTHER RISE IN SEPTEMBER IN THE MONEY SUPPLY ON ALL DEFINITIONS, AND ALSO IN TOTAL LOANS AND ADVANCES IN HONG KONG. THERE WAS A SUBSTANTIAL OUTFLOW OF FUNDS DURING THE MONTH.
HOWEVER, A FALL IN THE GROWTH RATE OF LOANS AND ADVANCES IN HONG KONG OVER THE PAST THREE MONTHS, TOGETHER WITH AN OUTFLOW OF FUNDS IN THE SAME PERIOD, CONTRIBUTED TO A SHARP DECLINE IN THE QUARTERLY GROWTH RATE OF THE MONEY SUPPLY.
THERE WAS ALSO A MARKED SHIFT IN NEW LENDING DURING THE THIRD QUARTER FROM DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES TO BANKS.
THE DETAILED MONEY SUPPLY AND BANKING FIGURES FOR SEPTEMBER 1980, AND COMPARISONS WITH PREVIOUS MONTHS, ARE SET OUT IN THE FOLLOWING TABLE:
/MONEY AND