XN000022-1977-04-29 — Page 7

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FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 1977

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR MARCH ******

THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY PUBLISHED THE PROVISIONAL FIGURES FOR HONG KONG'S EXTERNAL MERCHANDISE TRADE DURING MARCH 1977. THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS FOR MARCH WAS $2,327 MILLION, IMPORTS WERE WORTH $3,933 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS $763 MILLION.

THE FIGURES FOR THE PERIOD JANUARY TO MARCH 1977 (LATEST THREE MONTHS) SHOWED INCREASES, BY VALUE, COMPARED WITH THE SAME PERIOD IN 1976 OF 6.2 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 14.7 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS AND 7.2 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS.

COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH IN 1976, INCREASES, BY VALUE, OF $435 MILLION OR 12.4 PER CENT IN IMPORTS AND $17 MILLION OR 2.3 PER CENT IN RE-EXPORTS AND A DECREASE OF $185 MILLION OR 7.4 PER CENT IN EXPORTS WERE RECORDED.

THE SHORT TERM CHANGES, MARCH 1977 COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1977, SHOWED INCREASES OF $72 MILLION OR 3.2 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, $555 MILLION OR 16.4 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS AND $104 MILLION OR 15.7 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS. ALTHOUGH THE SMALL RISE IN EXPORTS IS CONSISTENT WITH A PARTIAL RECOVERY FROM THE SEASONALLY LOW FEBRUARY FIGURE, THE UNDERLYING TREND IN EXPORTS

IS STILL UNCERTAIN.

THE FIGURES FOR THE 12-MONTH PERIOD FROM APRIL 1976 TO MARCH 1977 COMPARED WITH THOSE OF THE PREVIOUS 12-MONTH PERIOD SHOWED INCREASES, BY VALUE, OF 31.3 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 23.5 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS AND 20.6 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS.

THE FOLLOWING TRADE TABLE GIVES THE COMPARATIVE FIGURES :

LATEST 3 MONTHS

JAN.-MAR.

1977

JAN.-MAR.

1976

INCREASE OR

DECREASE

$MN.

SMN.

$MN.

%

DOMESTIC EXPORTS

(% OF TOTAL EXPORTS)

7,271 (76.3%)

6,843 (76.4%)

427

+ 6.2

IMPORTS

11,143

9,717

+1,425

+14.7

RE-EXPORTS

2,263

+

(% OF TOTAL EXPORTS)

(23.7%)

2.112 (23.6%)

151 + 7.2

MARCH

MARCH

SAME MONTH LAST YEAR

1977

1976

INCREASE OR

DECREASE

$MN.

SMN.

SMN.

%

DOMESTIC EXPORTS

2,327

(% OF TOTAL EXPORTS)

(75.3%)

2,512 (77.19%)

185

-

7.4

IMPORTS

3,933

3,498

435

+12.4

RE-EXPORTS

763

(% OF TOTAL EXPORTS)

(24.79%)

746 (22.9%)

17

+ 2.3

/LAST YONTE