FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 1985
PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR MAY 1985
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THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS (DOMESTIC EXPORTS PLUS RE-EXPORTS) IN MAY 1985, AT $20 144 MILLION, GREW BY $1 775 MILLION OR NEARLY 10 PER CENT COMPARED WITH MAY 1984, ACCORDING TO THE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES PUBLISHED TODAY (FRIDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
WITHIN TOTAL EXPORTS, THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECREASED BY $896 MILLION OR 7.7 PER CENT, WHILE THE VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS GREW BY $2 671 MILLION OR 40 PER CENT.
THE VALUE OF IMPORTS, AT $19 216 MILLION IN MAY 1985, WAS TWO PER CENT HIGHER THAN IN MAY 1984.
AS THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS GREW AT A MUCH FASTER RATE THAN THAT OF IMPORTS, A VISIBLE TRADE SURPLUS EQUIVALENT TO FIVE PER CENT OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WAS RECORDED IN MAY 1985, COMPARED WITH A VISIBLE TRADE GAP (THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS) OF THREE PER CENT IN MAY 1984.
PUTTING THE MONTH'S TRADE FIGURES INTO CONTEXT, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF 1985 WAS $93 752 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF $49 451 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS OF $44 301 MILLION.
COMPARED WITH THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF 1984, THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS AND OF RE-EXPORTS ROSE BY 16 PER CENT AND 45 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY, WHILE THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS FELL BY TWO PER CENT,
THE VALUE OF IMPORTS GREW BY EIGHT PER CENT TO $93 014 MILLION. A VISIBLE TRADE SURPLUS EQUIVALENT TO 0.8 PER CENT OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WAS RECORDED FOR THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, COMPARED WITH A VISIBLE TRADE GAP OF SIX PER CENT IN THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR.
COMMENTING ON THESE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT SPOKESMAN SAID THAT THE YEAR-ON-YEAR GROWTH RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS, AFTER PEAKING IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1984, SLOWED DOWN DURING THE REST OF THE YEAR, AND THIS TREND CONTINUED INTO THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF 1985.
THE SLOWING DOWN IN THE GROWTH RATE OF THE UNITED STATES ECONOMY IN THE FIRST QUARTER AND THE RELATIVE STRENGTH OF THE HONG KONG DOLLAR BOTH CONTRIBUTED TO THE RELATIVELY POOR PERFORMANCE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN THE FIRST FIVE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR.
/RE-EXPORTS,