XN000022-1980-03-26 — Page 5

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26, 1980

- 3

+JUST AS IMPORTS IN JANUARY HAD RISEN DRAMATICALLY AS A RESULT OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR, SO IN FEBRUARY IT WAS EXPORTS THAT HAD BEEN AFFECTED, THE SPOKESMAN SAID.

+THE LARGE INCREASE OF 70 PER CENT RECORDED IN THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1979 WAS TO SOME EXTENT A RESULT OF SEASONAL FACTORS, HE ADDED.

THE SPOKESMAN EXPLAINED THAT EVERY YEAR THERE WAS A SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE IN EXPORTS BEFORE THE LUNAR NEW YEAR FOLLOWED BY A LULL AFTER THE HOLIDAY.

+AS IN 1979, THE LUNAR NEW YEAR FELL AT THE END OF JANUARY AND IN 1980 IN THE MIDDLE OF FEBRUARY, A FAIRLY DRAMATIC GROWTH IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN FEBRUARY 1980 COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1979 WAS TO BE EXPECTED, HE SAID.

PUTTING THE MONTH'S STATISTICS INTO CONTEXT, THE SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WAS 45 PER CENT HIGHER THAN FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1979. THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WAS 38 PER CENT HIGHER.

COMPARING STATISTICS OVER A LONGER PERIOD THE 12 MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY THIS YEAR WITH THE 12 MONTHS ENDING FEBRUARY 1979 - THE INCREASES BY VALUE WERE 39 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 50 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS, 42 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS AND 37 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.

+THUS THE LATEST TRADE FIGURES CONFIRM THAT TOTAL EXPORTS ARE STILL GROWING FASTER THAN IMPORTS, THE SPOKESMAN SAID.

+THE VISIBLE TRADE GAP, THAT IS THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE VALUE OF IMPORTS IS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF EXPORTS, WAS 15 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH 19 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1979, HE ADDED.

FOLLOWING ARE COMPARATIVE TRADE FIGURES.

DECEMBER 1979

TO

LATEST THREE MONTHS

FEBRUARY 1980

DECEMBER 1978

TO FEBRUARY 1979

INCREASE OR

DECREASE

$ MN.

$ MN.

$ MN.

%

DOMESTIC EXPORTS

14 717

10 600

+ 4 118

+ 38.8

RE-EXPORTS

5 724

3 865

+ 1 859

+ 48.1

TOTAL EXPORTS

20 442

14 465

+ 5 977

+ 41.3

IMPORTS

23 569

17 889

+5 681

+ 31.8

TRADE BALANCE

- 3 127

- 3 424

297

/SAME MONTH