7
Table 4 shows changes in the value of domestic exports of ten principal commodity divisions.
Comparing the first ten months of 1996 with the same period in 1995, the value of domestic exports of most principal commodity divisions decreased. More notable decreases were registered for clothing (by $4.3 billion or 7.0%); office machines and automatic data processing machines (by $4.2 billion or 28%); telecommunications and sound recording and reproducing apparatus and equipment (by $1.9 billion or 21%); miscellaneous manufactured articles consisting mainly of jewellery, goldsmiths' and silversmiths' wares (by $1.6 billion or 9.4%); photographic apparatus, equipment and supplies, optical goods, watches and clocks (by $1.4 billion or 10%); and electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and electrical parts thereof (by $661 million or 2.5%).
Over the same period, an increase in the value of domestic exports was registered for professional, scientific and controlling instruments and apparatus (by $260 million or 11%).
Changes in the value of imports from ten main suppliers are shown in Table 5.
Comparing October 1996 with October 1995, increases were recorded in the value of imports from the United Kingdom (+23%), Malaysia (+16%), Italy (+14%), the United States (+13%), Germany (+11%), China (+9.5%) and Singapore (+0.9%).
However, decreases were recorded in the value of imports from Taiwan (-13%), South Korea (-3.6%) and Japan (-2.1%).
Comparing the first ten months of 1996 with the same period in 1995, increases were recorded in the value of imports from Malaysia (+18%), Italy (+16%), the United Kingdom (+8.6%), the United States (+6.5%), China (+5.9%), Singapore (+5.0%) and Germany (+2.9%).
However, decreases were recorded in the value of imports from Japan (-7.4%), Taiwan (-5.0%) and South Korea (-0.5%).
Taking all sources together, the value of imports in the first ten months of 1996, at $1,273.2 billion, increased by 2.8% over the same period in 1995.
Table 6 shows changes in the value of imports of ten principal commodity
divisions.