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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1986
ON THE SAME BASIS OF COMPARISON, HONG KONG RECORDED INCREASES IN IMPORTS FROM ALL MAJOR SUPPLIERS, ESPECIALLY FROM THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA (110 PER CENT), THE U.S. (63 PER CENT), SWITZERLAND (56 PER CENT), TAIWAN (51 PER CENT) AND CHINA (47 PER CENT), RE-EXPORTS TO THE UNITED KINGDOM, THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, TAIWAN AND THE U.S. INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY BY 124 PER CENT, 93 PER CENT, 83 PER CENT, 73 PER CENT AND 72 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY.
TOTAL MERCHANDISE TRADE IN JANUARY TO OCTOBER 1986, VALUED AT $443 831 MILLION, INCREASED BY 16 PER CENT COMPARED WITH THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR, ON THE SAME BASIS OF COMPARISON, DOMESTIC EXPORTS INCREASED BY 17 PER CENT TO $123 746 MILLION WHILE RE-EXPORTS INCREASED BY 12 PER CENT TO $97 644 MILLION, SO THAT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS, THE TRADE VALUE INCREASED BY 15 PER CENT. IMPORTS INCREASED BY 18 PER CENT TO $222 441 MILLION.
COMPARING THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF 1986 WITH THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR, DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO MOST PRINCIPAL MARKETS INCREASED IN VALUE TERMS. THE MARKETS WITH RAPID GROWTH IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS INCLUDED FRANCE (47 PER CENT), THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY (40 PER CENT), THE NETHERLANDS (31 PER CENT), JAPAN (29 PER CENT) AND SINGAPORE (23 PER CENT).
DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO HONG KONG'S TWO LARGEST MARKETS, THE U.S. AND CHINA, HOWEVER, GREW LESS RAPIDLY, BY 11 PER CENT EACH. DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO AUSTRALIA DECREASED BY 2 PER CENT.
IMPORTS FROM THE MAJOR SUPPLIERS GENERALLY INCREASED OVER THE SAME PERIOD, PARTICULARLY THOSE FROM SWITZERLAND (57 PER CENT), CHINA (40 PER CENT), THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA (26 PER CENT), ITALY (24 PER CENT) AND THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY (20 PER CENT). À DECREASE WAS, HOWEVER, RECORDED IN IMPORTS FROM SINGAPORE (-6 PER CENT).
ON THE SAME BASIS OF COMPARISON, RE-EXPORTS TO THE UNITED KINGDOM, THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA, THE U.S. AND TAIWAN INCREASED SUBSTANTIALLY BY 105 PER CENT, 80 PER CENT, 53 PER CENT, 50 PER CENT AND 33 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY. ON THE OTHER HAND, RE-EXPORTS TO CHINA RECORDED A DECLINE (-17 PER CENT), AS DID THOSE TO MACAU (-2 PER CENT).
ALL TRADE STATISTICS PRESENTED HERE ARE MEASURED AT CURRENT PRICES AND NO ACCOUNT HAS BEEN TAKEN OF THE CHANGES IN PRICES BETWEEN THE PERIODS OF COMPARISON. A SEPARATE ANALYSIS OF THE PRICE AND VOLUME MOVEMENTS OF EXTERNAL TRADE FOR JANUARY TO OCTOBER 1986 WILL BE RELEASED IN EARLY JANUARY, 1987.
THE CHANGES IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO THE TEN MAJOR MARKETS ARE SHOWN IN TABLE 1.
/COMPARING THE