XN000022-1973-01-24 — Page 2

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Wednesday, January 24, 1973

CALL TO JAPAN TO END DISCRIMINATION AGAINST H.K. GOODS

Governor Speaks On H.K.

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Japan Trade in Sasebo

The Governor, Sir Murray MacLehose, today called for a more favourable balance of trade between Hong Kong and Japan and appealed

to the Japanese Government to end its "discrimination" against certain

Hong Kong products.

"The trading and economic links between Japan and Hong Kong,"

he warned, "may become strained if they are too one-sided."

The Governor was speaking in the Japanese port, Sasebo, on the

occasion of the christening of the World Maritime Bahamas Ltd's latest

tanker "World Victoria" by Lady MacLehose.

The 220,852-ton super tanker was built by the Sasebo Heavy

Industries Co. Ltd.

In his address, Sir Murray referred to the United Nations

Generalised Preferences for developing countries and to the so-called

Hong Kong Exceptions List which excludes 96 items of Hong Kong products

from preference in the Japanese market.

This exclusion does not apply to Hong Kong's major trading

rivals in Asia.

Sir Murray said he was not asking for special favours for

Hong Kong "but only that we should not be discriminated against as

compared with our close competitors."

He pointed out that Japanese goods made up one-quarter of

Hong Kong's exports while only 1/33 of our products went to Japan.

"In such