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Looking at world trade in the coming year, Sir Hamish said: "We can look forward to significant reductions in both tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade.
"As a major international business centre, we will also gain because key areas, such as services and trade-related intellectual property rights and investment measures, will become subject to a multilateral framework of rules and discipline.
"Improvements to dispute settlement procedures are particularly important to Hong Kong and other small economies which often lack the muscle to resolve differences with larger trading partners on a bilateral basis," he said.
The Financial Secretary said although the year did not start on a very optimistic note, the prospects for the world economy were better than they had been for many years.
Sir Hamish made it clear that the linked exchange rate was here to stay. He again stressed the importance to Hong Kong's stability and prosperity of the linked exchange rate, firmly supported by substantial reserves.
End/Wednesday, March 1, 1995
Three factors to fight inflation
The Financial Secretary, the Hon Sir Hamish Macleod, identified three factors to fight inflation which he forecast to be 8.5 per cent for 1995.
The factors are: fall in property prices, expansion of the workforce and rise in interest rates.
In his Budget Speech, Sir Hamish said: "Despite the welcome contributions from easier conditions in the property market and from higher interest rates, these will take time to have effect, and relatively high inflation will persist through 1995."
He assured the Legislative Council that the Government would continue to counter inflation as vigorously as possible and sensible in an open economy.
But further expansion of the economy does inevitably mean that the demand for land and labour will remain high in 1995.