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20
PUBLIC DEBT.
23. The inscribed Stock Loans of 1893 and 1906 amounted to £1,485,733 and the Sinking Fund stood at £761,447 as against £719,664 at the end of 1930.
24. The Public Works Loan (Ordinance No. 14 of 1927) amounted to $4,927,000. $3,000,000 of this loan was issued locally at par on November 1st 1927. The second issue was made on November 1st 1928 at a premium of 3%-Bonds to the nominal value of $1,927,000 being allotted. The Sinking Fund amounted to £98,036 as against £75,749 at the end of 1930.
NOTE CIRCULATION.
25. The local circulation of notes and specie in Reserve of the three banks having authorized issues were as follows at 31st December:-
Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking
Corporation
Chartered Bank of India Australia
and China......
Mercantile Bank of India Limited
Total........
EXCHANGE,
Notes in Circulation
Specie in Reserve
$128,738.801 $112,000,000
22,483,681
3,409,400
8,300,000 1,350,000
$154,631,882 $121,650,000
26. The average monthly rates for sterling and Shanghai taels were as follows:-
January
February
March
April May
June
11.844 74.698
11.027 76.053
11.774 76.579
11.768 77.342
11.556 78.169
11.475 79.108
July August September
1/-.040 78.895
11.524 79.169
1/-.212 77.891
October
1/2.492 76.741
November
1/4.200 75.300
December
1/5.181 74.612
}
21
The opening rate of the year on January 2nd was Is./0gd., the closing rate on December 31st was 1/5/16- The lowest rate quoted during the year was 10d. on 14th February and the highest rate 1/513 on the 8th December.
GENERAL.
27. The estimates for the year were based on $1.-18. /4d. and a deficit of approximately $2,300,000 was budgeted for. To reduce this deficit it was decided that the basis of conversion of sterling salaries into dollars should be altered, half being con- verted at the Treasury rate of exchange and half at is./6d. to the dollar. The adoption of this plan was estimated to effect a saving of $388,000 in the expenditure reducing the deficit to $1,912,000. The opening rate of exchange for 1931 was however 18./03d. to the dollar and it was estimated that the fall in the dollar from 1s./4d. to 1/- would increase expenditure during 1931 by $1,838,000 allowance having already been made for the payment of salaries in the manner indicated. Steps had there- fore to be taken both to reduce expenditure and to increase revenue. The Estimates were accordingly pruned to the extent of $950,000 and extra revenue was obtained by the following increases.
Opium prices raised as from 13/2/31 estimated
to produce Liquor duties from 19/2/31 estimated to produce Tobacco duties from 19/2/31 estimated to produce Postal Rates from 1/4/31 estimated to produce...
$166,000
350,000
928,000
150,000
The effect of these proposals was estimated to bring the deficit back to the original figure of $1,912,000 (allowing for 20% Military Contribution on the extra revenue).
28. The dollar actually dropped on the 14th February 1931 tc 10 d. the lowest point reached. Meanwhile the question of increasing licences, fees and other receipts was explored. The result of this may be seen by referring to the table given earlier in this report. The revenue was well maintained and at the end of the half year $2,068,007 more than one half of the original estimate of $27,488,759 for the whole year had been obtained.
29. In normal times the revenue of Hong Kong comes in steadily throughout the year. There is no period shewing a heavy excess over any other period. The following figures show the collections during each Quarter of 1931.
1st Quarter
2nd
3rd
}}
4th
J
$7,942,445
$7,869,941
$8,089,384
$9,244,952
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