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Since its establishment, the WCO has been promoting closer international Customs links within its membership which has now increased to 142, including China and Hong Kong.
The annual event, the spokesman noted, was a means of promoting customs co- operation and forging closer links among customs officials of different customs administrations.
About 400 guests, including members of the Executive and Legislative Councils, senior government officials, Consuls-General and Foreign Customs Attaches, and top executives from trade and business organisations, attended today's reception at the Customs and Excise Service Senior Officers' Mess.
Also at the function, the Executive Director of Hong Kong Trade Development Council, Mr Michael C C Sze, presented WCO certificates of merit to nine Hong Kong Customs officers in recognition of their efforts in organising the 1996 World Customs Organization Conference held in Hong Kong in June last
year.
End
November provisional statistics of retail sales released
The value of total retail sales in November 1996, estimated at $18.4 billion, increased by 8% when compared with November 1995. After discounting the effect of price changes over the period, total retail sales increased by 3% in volume.
These are provisional figures on retail sales released today (Friday) by the Census and Statistics Department.
Compared with a year ago, the increase in November 1996 was mainly attributable to the increase in spending on consumer durable goods (12% in both value and volume). While sales of consumer durable goods other than motor vehicles surged by 13% in value and 12% in volume, that of motor vehicles grew by 11% in both value and volume.
Concurrently, sales of some other commodities also recorded increases of various magnitudes in both value and volume terms. These included jewellery, watches and clocks and valuable gifts (7% in both value and volume); miscellaneous consumer goods (12% in value and 6% in volume) and food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco (3% in value and 0.2% in volume). Sales in supermarkets also went up by 11% in value and 5% in volume.