WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 1986
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OF THE CARGO DISCHARGED FROM INCOMING SHIPS, 85 PER CENT IN TERMS OF TONNAGE WAS IMPORTS AND 15 PER CENT WAS TRANSHIPMENT CARGO. OF THE CARGO LOADED ONTO OUTGOING SHIPS, 55 PER CENT WAS EXPORTS (INCLUDING RE-EXPORTS) AND 45 PER CENT WAS TRANSHIPMENT CARGO.
THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF LOADING FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS IN TONNAGE TERMS WERE JAPAN (18 PER CENT), SINGAPORE (13 PER CENT), CHINA (12 PER CENT) AND THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA (10 PER CENT), WHILE THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF DISCHARGE FOR SEABORNE EXPORTS WERE THE U.S. (20 PER CENT), CHINA (16 PER CENT), TAIWAN (14 PER CENT) AND JAPAN (6 PER CENT).
TRANSHIPMENT CARGO WAS MAINLY LOADED IN CHINA (28 PER CENT) AND THE U.S. (23 PER CENT), AND WAS ALSO MAINLY DISCHARGED IN CHINA (26 PER CENT) AND THE U.S. (14 PER CENT).
COMPARING THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 1985 WITH THE SAME QUARTER IN 1984, INCREASES IN TONNAGE WERE NOTED FOR IMPORTS FROM CANADA (+93 PER CENT), THAILAND (+83 PER CENT), THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA (+58 PER CENT), AND CHINA (+24 PER CENT), BUT A DECLINE WAS RECORDED FOR IMPORTS FROM THE U.S. -22 PER CENT).
AS A WHOLE, THE TOTAL TONNAGE OF IMPORTS ROSE BY 13 PER CENT. AMONG THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES, INCREASES IN CARGO TONNAGE WERE RECORDED IN THE IMPORTS OF INORGANIC CHEMICALS (+82 PER CENT), LOG AND TIMBER (+71 PER CENT) AND COAL, COKE AND BRIQUETTES (+45 PER CENT). HOWEVER, A DECREASE WAS NOTED FOR THE IMPORTS OF PETROLEUM, PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND RELATED MATERIALS (-22 PER CENT).
OVER THE SAME PERIOD, THE TONNAGE OF TOTAL SEABORNE EXPORTS (DOMESTIC EXPORTS PLUS RE-EXPORTS) INCREASED BY 14 PER CENT. INCREASES IN TONNAGE WERE RECORDED FOR SEABORNE EXPORTS TO CHINA (+39 PER CENT), JAPAN (+38 PER CENT), TAIWAN (+29 PER CENT) AND SINGAPORE (+23 PER CENT), BUT DECREASES WERE NOTED FOR EXPORTS TO INDONESIA (~16 PER CENT) AND SOUTH KOREA (-5 PER CENT).
AMONG THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES, INCREASES WERE NOTED FOR EXPORTS OF IRON AND STEEL (+128 PER CENT), VEGETABLES AND FRUIT (+55 PER CENT) AND CEMENT AND CEMENT CLINKER (+54 PER CENT). HOWEVER, THE EXPORTS OF TOYS DROPPED (-21 PER CENT).
SHIPPING STATISTICS ARE COMPILED PRIMARILY FROM GENERAL DECLARATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE MARINE DEPARTMENT BY SHIPOWNERS OR AUTHORISED SHIPPING AGENTS, AND COVER ALL OCEAN-GOING VESSELS ENTERING AND LEAVING HONG KONG, EXCLUDING YACHTS AND PLEASURE CRAFT.
PORT AND CARGO STATISTICS ARE COMPILED FROM OCEAN CARGO MANIFESTS SUPPLIED BY SHIPPING COMPANIES OR AGENTS TO THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT, BECAUSE OF RESOURCE CONSTRAINTS, A SAMPLE OF ALL CONSIGNMENTS LISTED IN THE MANIFESTS IS USED FOR COMPILING THE STATISTICS. THE SAMPLING METHOD IS DESCRIBED IN THE EXPLANATORY NOTES OF THE REPORT.
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