XN000022-1979-02-20 — Page 5

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1979

INCREASED IMPORTS FROM CHINA WERE ALSO REGISTERED IN ITEMS SUCH AS TEXTILE PRODUCTS ($2,138 MILLION, +68 PER CENT) LIVE ANIMALS CHIEFLY FOR FOOD ($1,152 MILLION, +FOUR PER CENT) VEGETABLES AND FRUIT ($782 MILLION, +24 PER CENT) AND PETROLEUM AND RELATED MATERIALS ($753 MILLION, +55 PER CENT).

THE RISE IN IMPORTS FROM U.S.A. COULD BE ACCOUNTED FOR MAINLY BY INCREASES IN SHIPMENTS OF TEXTILE FIBRES ($827 MILLION, +27 PER CENT), PEARLS, PRECIOUS AND SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES ($764 MILLION, +75 PER CENT) AND ALSO ELECTRICAL MACHINERY ($637 MILLION, +15 PER CENT) AND OFFICE MACHINES ($604 MILLION, +15 PER CENT).

THERE WAS ALSO A RISE IN SHIPMENTS OF TEXTILE YARN, FABRICS, MADE-UP ARTICLES AND RELATED PRODUCTS ($1,720 MILLION, +22 PER CENT) FROM TAIWAN AND IN SHIPMENTS OF ELECTRICAL MACHINERY ($276 MILLION, +37 PER CENT) AND WATCHES AND CLOCKS ($166 MILLION, +67 PER CENT) FROM SINGAPORE.

THE FOLLOWING TABLE ILLUSTRATES THE CHANGES IN IMPORTS BY COMMODITY SECTIONS:

MANUFACTURED

1977

1978 (HK$ MN) (HK$ MN)

INCREASE

(HK$ MN)

PERCENTAGE CHANGE

GOODS CLASSFIED

CHIEFLY BY

MATERIAL (MAINLY

TEXTILE PRODUCTS

AND DIAMONDS)

14,612 20,498

+5,886

+40

MACHINERY AND

TRANSPORT

EQUIPMENT

9,541 12,467

+2,925

+31

MISCELLANEOUS

MANUFACTURED

ARTICLES (MAINLY

WATCHES AND

CLOCKS AND

ARTICLES OF

APPAREL)

6,356 8,884

+2,529

+40

FOOD AND LIVE

ANIMALS CHIEFLY

FOR FOOD

7,234 8,207

973

+13

CHEMICALS

AND RELATED

PRODUCTS

3,641 4,606

965

+27

REMARKABLE

*