XN000022-1977-11-06 — Page 4

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 1977

SURGE IN SALES OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS

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SALES OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS HAVE INCREASED FOLLOWING THE OPENING OF MODERN BOOKSHOP FACILITIES ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE NEW POST OFFICE BUILDING.

REVENUE FROM SALES FOR THE FIRST HALF OF THE CURRENT FINANCIAL YEAR TOTALS MORE THAN $2.4 MILLION, AN INCREASE OF 25 PER CENT ON THE SAME PERIOD IN 1976-77.

+THIS IS A VERY SATISFACTORY RESULT WHICH SHOWS THAT THE NEW GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS CENTRE IS FULFILLING AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC,+ A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID TODAY.

+WITH HONG KONG'S OPEN STYLE OF GOVERNMENT IT IS VERY NECESSARY THAT THE COMMUNITY SHOULD BE ABLE TO OBTAIN FACTS, FIGURES AND INFORMATION TO WIDEN THEIR KNOWLEDGE ON SUBJECTS THAT ARE RELEVANT TO HONG KONG'S ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT.

+THIS DOES MEAN, OF COURSE, THAT QUITE A LOT OF HEAVY READING IS REQUIRED IN ORDER TO BE WELL-INFORMED, BUT THERE ARE ALSO GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS OF MORE GENERAL INTEREST DEALING WITH HONG KONG AND ITS AFFAIRS.

THE HONG KONG YEARBOOK, THE SPOKESMAN SAID, HAS BECOME A BESTSELLER, AND EXTRA COPIES HAVE TO BE PRINTED IN ENGLISH AND CHINESE EACH YEAR TO KEEP PACE WITH DEMAND. THE PRINT-RUN FOR THE CURRENT YEARBOOK, +HONG KONG 1977+, TOTALLED MORE THAN 34,000 COPIES. THE CHINESE EDITION IS ALREADY SOLD OUT, WHILE ONLY 200 COPIES OF THE ENGLISH VERSION ARE STILL AVAILABLE.

A NEW SERIES OF BOOKS UNDER THE GENERAL TITLE +THIS IS HONG KONG+ IS NOW BEING DEVELOPED WITH THE AIM OF SPREADING INFORMATION ABOUT FEATURES OF HONG KONG WHICH HAVE NOT YET BEEN WIDELY PUBLICISED.

FIVE BOOKS IN THIS SERIES ARE IN VARIOUS STAGES OF PRODUCTION. THE FIRST OF THE SERIES TEMPLES IN HONG KONG

TEMPLES IN HONG KONG WILL BE PUBLISHED SHORTLY.

NEW +GLOSSY+ BOOKLETS WITH FULL COLOUR PICTURES ARE ALSO BEING PRODUCED. THE FIRST OF THESE, INDUSTRIAL INVESTMENT HONG KONG+, +THE PORT OF HONG KONG+ AND +SOCIAL WELFARE IN HONG KONG+ ARE ALREADY ON SALE. OTHER RECENT PUBLICATIONS INCLUDE THREE COLOUR BOOKLETS ON HONG KONG'S NEW TOWNS WHICH ARE BEING DEVELOPED AT TSUEN WAN, SHA TIN AND TUEN MUN.

ANOTHER NEW ITEM IS A COLOUR LEAFFLET WHICH GIVES INFORMATION ABOUT HONG KONG'S FIRST COUNTRY PARK, SHING MUN. THIS IS NOW ON SALE AT 50 CENTS EACH AND WILL BE FOLLOWED BY LEAFLETS ON OTHER COUNTRY PARKS.

MAPS. POSTCARDS AND PRINTS OF OLD HONG KONG ARE AMONG OTHER ITEMS AVAILABLE FROM THE GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS CENTRE. A FULL LIST OF GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS, CONTAINING ABOUT 3,000 TITLES, CAN BE OBTAINED FREE ON REQUEST.

SELECTED RANGE.