SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1981
PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR JANUARY 1981
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THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY (SATURDAY) PUBLISHED THE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR HONG KONG'S MERCHANDISE TRADE IN JANUARY 1981.
THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR JANUARY WAS $9 674 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $6 346 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS AŤ $3 328 MILLION. WITH IMPORTS AT $10 685 MILLION, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR JANUARY WAS $1 011 MILLION.
COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH IN 1980, THERE WERE THE FOLLOWING INCREASES BY VALUE: $1 349 MILLION OR 27 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS= $1 281 MILLION OR 63 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS- $2 630 MILLION OR 37 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS AND $2 553 MILLION OR 31 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.
THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+, THAT IS THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS, WAS 9.5 PER CENT IN JANUARY THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH 13.4 PER CENT IN JANUARY 1980.
COMMENTING ON THE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID THE GROWTH RATE OF THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN JANUARY 1981 WAS HIGHER THAN THOSE RECORDED IN RECENT MONTHS, WITH THE GROWTH RATE OF RE-EXPORTS REMAINING RAPID, THE GROWTH RATE OF TOTAL EXPORTS WAS FASTER THAN THAT OF IMPORTS, CONTRIBUTING TO A NARROWING OF THE VISIBILE TRADE +GAP+.
HE STRESSED THE IMPORTANCE OF NOT READING TOO MUCH INTO ONE MONTH'S STATISTICS PARTICULARLY SINCE, AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, THE FIGURES WERE AFFECTED BY THE TIMING OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR. UNLIKE 1980 WHEN THE LUNAR NEW YEAR FELL IN THE MIDDLE OF FEBRUARY, THE LUNAR NEW YEAR OF 1981 WAS IN EARLY FEBRUARY, SO THE HIGHER GROWTH RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN JANUARY MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE RESULT OF A SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE IN SHIPMENTS DURING THE DAYS PRECEDING THE NEW YEAR HOLIDAY.
COMPARING THE STATISTICS FOR NOVEMBER 1980 TO JANUARY 1981 WITH THOSE FOR NOVEMBER 1979 TO JANUARY 1980, THE INCREASES BY VALUE WERE 16 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 58 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS, 28 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS AND 33 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.
THE FOLLOWING IS A COMPARATIVE TABLE OF THE PROVISIONAL MERCHANDISE TRADE FIGURES FOR JANUARY:
MERCHANDISE.
DOMESTIC EXPORTS RE-EXPORTS TOTAL EXPORTS
IMPORTS
TRADE BALANCE
: $ 6 346 MILLION 1 $ 3 328 MILLION $ 9 674 MILLION
❘ $10 685 MILLION
■ $ 1 011 MILLION (IN DEFICIT)
/COMPARATIVE FIGURES