SATURDAY, MARCH 28, 1981
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PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR FEBRUARY 1981
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THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR FEBRUARY 1981 WAS $6 817 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $3 938 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS AT $2 878 MILLION, ACCORDING TO PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES PUBLISHED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY (SATURDAY).
WITH IMPORTS AT $9 091 MILLION, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR FEBRUARY WAS $2 274 MILLION.
COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH IN 1980, THERE WAS A DECREASE OF $193 MILLION OR FIVE PER CENT FOR THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS. BUT THIS WAS MORE THAN OFFSET BY AN INCREASE OF $1 091 MILLION OR 61 PER CENT FOR THE VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS SO THAT THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS INCREASED BY $898 MILLION OR 15 PER CENT.
THE VALUE OF IMPORTS INCREASED BY $1 967 MILLION OR 28 PER CENT. THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+, THAT IS THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS, WAS 25 PER CENT IN FEBRUARY THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH 16.9 PER CENT IN FEBRUARY 1980.
COMMENTING ON THE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN AGAIN STRESSED THE IMPORTANCE OF NOT READING TOO MUCH INTO ONE MONTH'S STATISTICS PARTICULARLY SINCE, AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, THE FIGURES ARE AFFECTED BY THE TIMING OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR.
HE EXPLAINED THAT EVERY YEAR THERE WAS A SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS BEFORE THE LUNAR NEW YEAR FOLLOWED BY A LULL AFTER THE HOLIDAY. AS IN 1981 LUNAR NEW YEAR FELL IN EARLY FEBRUARY AND IN 1980 IN THE MIDDLE OF FEBRUARY, SLOW OR EVEN NEGATIVE GROWTH IN FEBRUARY WAS EXPECTED AFTER THE UNUSUALLY HIGH GROWTH IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN JANUARY.
PUTTING THE MONTH'S STATISTICS INTO CONTEXT, THE SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WAS 13 PER CENT HIGHER THAN IN THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1980. THE VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS WAS 62 PER CENT HIGHER AND SO THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS WAS 27 PER CENT HIGHER.
HOWEVER, HE ALSO POINTED OUT THAT THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WAS 30 PER CENT HIGHER, SUGGESTING THAT THE GROWTH RATE OF EMPORTS WAS FASTER THAN THẤT OF TOTAL EXPORTS. THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+ FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1981 WAS 16.6 PER CENT COMPARED WITH 15 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1980.
COMPARING STATISTICS EXTENDING OVER A LONGER PERIOD, THE 12 MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY THIS YEAR WITH THE 12 MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY 1980, THE INCREASES BY VALUE WERE 18 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 53 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS, 27 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS AND 29 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.
THE FOLLOWING PROVISIONAL MERCHANDISE TRADE FIGURES FOR FEBRUARY 1980 HAS BEEN RELEASED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
MERCHANDISE: ........