TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1982
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THIS YEAR, THE CUSTOMS SERVICE HAS SEIZED NEARLY 178 KILOS OF HEROIN BASE, 91 KILOS IN TWO CASES ALONE, AN AMOUNT WHICH IN ITSELF EXCEEDS THE TOTAL OF 84 KILOS SEIZED LAST YEAR. ADDITIONALLY THE SERVICE HAS SEIZED NEARLY 20 KILOS OF HEROIN NO. 3.
+THE VERY SIZE OF THESE SEIZURES PUSHED THE PRICE OF HEROIN UP TO $10 000 PER 100 GRAMS IN FEBRUARY AND EVEN HIGHER IN MID-MARCH, AN INDICATION OF THE DAMAGE GOOD LAW ENFORCEMENT CAN DO IN THIS SORRY SCENE. BUT WHILE WE ARE ENCOURAGED BY SUCH SUCCESSES WE ARE MINDFUL OF THE RECENT BUMPER CROP AND OF THE DANGERS WHICH CONTINUE AHEAD, MR JORDAN CONCLUDED.
MONEY SUPPLY AND FINANCIAL STATISTICS FOR JULY 1982
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THE MONEY SUPPLY AND FINANCIAL STATISTICS FOR JULY 1982 ARE PUBLISHED TODAY. CERTAIN STRUCTURAL FACTORS CONTINUED TO AFFECT THE FIGURES. THUS THERE WAS A FURTHER SHIFT OF DEPOSITS FROM DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES TO BANKS, CAUSING M2 TO GROW FASTER THAN M3; AND FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSITS AGAIN EXPANDED BY MORE THAN HONG KONG DOLLAR DEPOSITS, CAUSING TOTAL MONEY SUPPLY ON THE BROADER DEFINITIONS (M2 AND M3) TO GROW FASTER THAN ITS HONG KONG DOLLAR-DENOMINATED COMPONENT.
THE ACCOMPANYING TABLE WHICH IS BEING TRANSMITTED BY FACSIMILE NETWORK AND ALSO BOXED SEPARATELY, SETS OUT THE DETAILED FIGURES FOR JULY 1982, AND FOR EARLIER MONTHS, FROM THE STATISTICS COLLECTED UNDER THE MONETARY STATISTICS ORDINANCE.
HONG KONG DOLLAR MONEY SUPPLY
THE HK$ MONEY SUPPLY, ON THE NARROWEST DEFINITION, M1, FELL BY 1.2 PER CENT IN JULY, AFTER RISING BY 1.4 PER CENT IN JUNE. PARTLY REFLECTING THE CONTINUING SHIFT OF DEPOSITS FROM DEPOSIT-TAKING COMPANIES TO BANKS, HK$ M2 GREW BY 1.3 PER CENT IN JULY WHILE HK$ M3 WAS VIRTUALLY UNCHANGED. THESE FIGURES COMPARE WITH A GROWTH OF 2.1 PER CENT IN HK$ M2 AND A FALL OF 1 PER CENT IN HK$ M3 IN THE PREVIOUS MONTH.
IN THE LAST THREE MONTHS HK$ M1 AND M3 FELL BY 1.4 PER CENT AND 2.3 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY, WHILE HK$ M2 GREW BY 4.2 PER CENT. OVER THE TWELVE MONTHS TO JULY, HK$ M1, M2 AND M3 ROSE BY 4.4 PER CENT, 19.6 PER CENT AND 5 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY.
TOTAL (ALL CURRENCIES) MONEY SUPPLY
TOTAL M1 FELL BY 0.2 PER CENT IN JULY FOLLOWING AN INCREASE OF 1.7 PER CENT IN JUNE. TOTAL M2 GREW BY 5.1 PER CENT, AFTER RISING BY 7.6 PER CENT IN JUNE, AND TOTAL M3 ROSE BY 3.9 PER CENT, AFTER AN INCREASE OF 3.5 PER CENT IN THE PREVIOUS MONTH.
/IN THE