SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1985
OCTOBER EXTERNAL TRADE STATISTICS RELEASED
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TOTAL MERCHANDISE TRADE FOR JANUARY-OCTOBER 1985, VALUED AT $382 112 MILLION, INCREASED BY FIVE PER CENT COMPARED WITH THE SAME PERIOD IN 1984, ACCORDING TO TRADE VALUE STATISTICS RELEASED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
ON THE SAME BASIS OF COMPARISON, DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECREASED BY SEVEN PER CENT TO $106 107 MILLION, WHILE RE-EXPORTS INCREASED BY 31 PER CENT TO $87 082 MILLION AND IMPORTS INCREASED BY THREE PER CENT TO $188 923 MILLION. TAKING DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE- EXPORTS TOGETHER, THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS INCREASED BY SEVEN PER CENT.
ALL THE TRADE STATISTICS PRESENTED HEREIN ARE MEASURED AT CURRENT PRICES AND NO ACCOUNT HAS BEEN TAKEN OF THE CHANGES IN PRICES BETWEEN THE PERIODS OF COMPARISON. A SEPARATE ANALYSIS ON THE PRICE AND VOLUME MOVEMENTS OF EXTERNAL TRADE FOR OCTOBER 1985 WILL BE RELEASED EARLY NEXT MONTH.
THE CHANGES IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO THE TEN MAJOR MARKETS ARE SHOWN IN TABLE 1.
COMPARING THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF 1985 WITH THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR, THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO THE U.S. DECREASED BY NINE PER CENT. ANALYSED BY COMMODITY, DECREASES WERE RECORDED IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND SOUND RECORDING AND REPRODUCING APPARATUS AND EQUIPMENT (BY $1 414 MILLION OR 32 PER CENT); OFFICE MACHINES AND AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING EQUIPMENT (BY $1 232 MILLION OR 29 PER CENT) AS WELL AS ELECTRICAL MACHINERY, APPARATUS AND APPLIANCES, AND ELECTRICAL PARTS THEREOF (BY $902 MILLION OR 17 PER CENT).
ON THE OTHER HAND, INCREASES WERE RECORDED IN PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS, EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES, OPTICAL GOODS, WATCHES AND CLOCKS (BY $120 MILLION OR FOUR PER CENT) AS WELL AS CLOTHING (BY $104 MILLION OR ONE PER CENT).
MOST COMMODITIES EXPORTED TO CHINA INCREASED RAPIDLY IN VALUE PARTICULARLY OFFICE MACHINES AND AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING EQUIPMENT (BY $736 MILLION OR 248 PER CENT); TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND SOUND RECORDING AND REPRODUCING APPARATUS AND EQUIPMENT (BY $533 MILLION OR 35 PER CENT) AS WELL AS MISCELLANEOUS MANUFACTURED ARTICLES (MAINLY BABY CARRIAGES, TOYS, GAMES. SPORTING GOODS AS WELL AS MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS AND PARTS AND ACCESSORIES THEREOF) (BY $528 MILLION OR 44 PER CENT).
HOWEVER, DECREASES WERE REGISTERED FOR TEXTILES (BY $44 MILLION OR THREE PER CENT) AS WELL AS NON-METALLIC MINERAL MANUFACTURES (BY $37 MILLION OR 26 PER CENT).
DECREASES IN