MONDAY, MAY 19, 1986
HE SAID: +OUR PROCESS OF SELECTION IS NOW RIGOROUS AND WE LOOK CLOSELY AT THE PARENTAGE OF THE NEW ENTRANTS.
+SOMETHING LIKE TWO-THIRDS OF ALL DTC'S ARE NOW OWNED BY BANKS. THE NEW ENTRANTS ARE OFFSPRING OF JURISDICTIONS WHERE WE ARE CONTENT WITH THE DEGREE OF PRUDENTIAL SUPERVISION EXERCISED BY THE LOCAL AUTHOR ITIES.+
RECALLING THE PERIOD SINCE HE BECAME FINANCIAL SECRETARY, SIR JOHN SAID SOME OF THE MORE INTERESTING EVENTS CAME SIZZLING OUT OF THE DTC INDUSTRY.
HE RECOUNTED: +WE STARTED WITH THE COLLAPSE OF DOLLAR CREDIT IN NOVEMBER 1982, WHICH LED TO A CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE IN THE INTERBANK MARKET AND THE DTC'S GENERALLY.
+WE SORTED THAT IMMEDIATE PROBLEM FAIRLY QUICKLY WITH THE HELP OF THE NOTE ISSUING BANKS. THIS WAS A WARNING SHOT OF TROUBLES AHEAD.
+ IN THE FOLLOWING THREE YEARS WE HAVE HAD SOME NEAR RUN AFFAIRS. BUT I THINK THAT WE CAN CLAIM THAT THE DTC SECTOR IS NOW IN A MUCH HEALTHIER POSITION.
QUARTERLY INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION INDEX PUBLISHED *****
THE INDEX OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION IN THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 1985, AT 137.9, WAS 5.8 POINTS OR 4.0 PER CENT LOWER THAN THAT IN THE SAME QUARTER OF 1984, ACCORDING TO STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.
COMPARED WITH THE PRECEDING QUARTER, THE INDEX SHOWED AN INCREASE OF 5.8 POINTS OR 4.4 PER CENT.
INDUSTRIES WITH SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN PRODUCTION OVER THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 1984 INCLUDED TOBACCO (+42.7 PER CENT); CHEMICALS AND CHEMICAL PRODUCTS (+21.9 PER CENT) FOOD (+20.6 PER CENT) AND PROFESSIONAL AND SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT, ṚHOTOGRAPHIC AND OPTICAL GOODS, WATCHES AND CLOCKS (+20.2 PER CENT).
HOWEVER, SEVERAL INDUSTRIES REPORTED DECLINES IN PRODUCTION OVER THE SAME PERIOD. THESE INCLUDED RUBBER PRODUCTS (-33.2 PER CENT); TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT (-24.3 PER CENT); CONSUMER ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS (-20.3 PER CENT); ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC PARTS, ACCESSORIES AND MACHINERY (-18.6 PER CENT); PAPER AND PAPER PRODUCTS (-12.9 PER CENT) AND PLASTIC PRODUCTS (-12.2 PER CENT).
/COMPARING THE