XN000022-1975-05-30 — Page 5

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FRIDAY, MAY 30, 1975.

HONG KONG ASSOCIATION ELECTS NEW CHAIRMAN

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MR. JOHN SWIRE, CHAIRMAN OF THE SWIRE GROUP, HAS BEEN ELECTED CHAIRMAN OF THE HONG KONG ASSOCIATION IN BRITAIN, HE SUCCEEDS MR. MICHAEL HERRIES.

SPEAKING AT THE ASSOCIATION'S ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING IN LONDON YESTERDAY (THURSDAY), THE OUTGOING CHAIRMAN MR. HERRIES CRITICISED THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY FOR EXCLUDING HONG KONG FROM ITS GENERALISED PREFERENCE SCHEME FOR TEXTILES.

MR. HERRIES SAID THAT IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HONG KONG'S DECLINING OVERSEAS TRADE, IT WAS TO BE DEPLORED THAT HONG KONG TEXTILES WERE STILL DENIED PREFERENCE BY THE EEC ALTHOUGH PLASTIC AND RUBBER FOOTWEAR MADE IN HONG KONG WERE INCLUDED · IN THE EEC'S GENERALISED SCHEME OF PREFERENCE FROM JANUARY 1 THIS YEAR.

HE NOTED THAT THE JAPANESE HAD REDUCED THE NUMBER OF HONG KONG PRODUCTS WHICH WERE EXCLUDED FROM THEIR SCHEME. BUT IT WAS DISAPPOINTING THAT HONG KONG WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE UNITED STATES' LIST OF COUNTRIES INCLUDED IN THE AMERICAN SCHEME TOWARDS THE END OF THE YEAR.

+HOWEVER, I AM GLAD TO REPORT THAT AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MONTH STRONG REPRESENTATIONS MADE IN WASHINGTON BY THE DIRECTOR OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY HAVE BORNE FRUIT AND HONG KONG WILL AT LAST BE INCLUDED IN THE LIST, HAVING AGREED TO DROP PREFERENCES IT GIVES IMPORTS FROM COMMONWEALTH COUNTRIES- A RELATIVELY SMALL PRICE TO PAY IN VIEW OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE AMERICAN MARKET TO HONG KONG,+ MR. HERRIES SAID.

ON U.K. TRADE WITH HONG KONG, HE SAID, +FOR THOSE WHO COMPLAIN WE IMPORT FAR MORE FROM HONG KONG THAN WE EXPORT.

I THINK IT IS PERTINENT TO POINT OUT THAT PER HEAD OF POPULATION HONG KONG IMPORTED ABOUT POUND STERLING 38 OF GOODS FROM THE U.K. WHILST THE UNITED KINGDOM IMPORTED LESS THAN POUND STERLING 6 PER HEAD FROM HONG KONG IN 1974.+

IN HIS SPEECH, MR. HERRIES ALSO SAID HE FELT HE SHOULD STEP DOWN AS CHAIRMAN OF THE ASSOCIATION BUT WOULD BE GLAD TO CONTINUE SERVING ON THE COMMITTEE. HE ADDED THAT IN FUTURE HE WOULD BE SPENDING MORE TIME IN SCOTLAND.

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