XN000022-1980-04-25 — Page 2

FRIDAY, APRIL 25, 1980

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR MARCH

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THE VALUE OF HONG KONG'S TOTAL EXPORTS FOR MARCH WAS $6 787 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $4 585 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS AT $2 202 MILLION, ACCORDING TO PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES RELEASED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY (FRIDAY).

WITH IMPORTS AT $8 959 MILLION, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR MARCH WAS $2 172 MILLION.

COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH IN 1979, INCREASES BY VALUE WERE RECORDED IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS, UP $771 MILLION OR 20 PER CENT- RE-EXPORTS $643 MILLION OR 43 PERCENT- TOTAL EXPORTS $1 414 MILLION OR 26 PER CENT AND IMPORTS $2 477 MILLION OR 38 PER CENT.

COMMENTING ON THESE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID THE DROP FROM THE 70 PER CENT INCREASE IN THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN FEBRUARY THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1979 TO A 20 PER CENT INCREASE IN MARCH THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH MARCH 1979 WAS LARGELY THE RESULT OF SEASONAL FACTORS.

HE EXPLAINED THAT, IN MARCH LAST YEAR, DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAD ALREADY REGŐVÉRED FULLY FROM THE LUNAR- NEW YEAR LULL, BUT IN MARCH THIS YEAR THEY WERE STILL IN THE PROCESS OF RECOVERING BECAUSE LUNAR NEW YEAR WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF FEBRUARY, COMPARED WITH THE END OF JANUARY IN 1979.

MANUFACTURING PRODUCTION IN THE SECOND HALF OF FEBRUARY THIS YEAR, WHICH WOULD NORMALLY BE REFLECTED IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN MARCH, COULD NOT HAVE BEEN SUBSTANTIAL, PARTICULARLY AS A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF COMPANIES EXTENDED THE HOLIDAY PERIOD FOR THE IR WORKERS.

PUTTING THE MONTH'S STATISTICS INTO CONTEXT, THE SPOKESMAN SAID THE VALUES OF TOTAL EXPORTS AND IMPORTS FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS YEAR WERE BOTH 38 PER CENT HIGHER THAN FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1979.

THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+, THAT IS THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE VALUE OF IMPORTS IS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS, WAS 18.4 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS YEAR, THE SAME AS THAT FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1979. THUS, AS ENVISAGED BY THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY IN HIS BUDGET SPEECH, THE GROWTH RATE OF IMPORTS IS CATCHING UP WITH TOTAL EXPORTS, WITH THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+ CEASING TO NARROW, INVOLVING A REVERSAL, FOR THE TIME BEING, OF RECENT TRENDS.

THE FOLLOWING ARE COMPARATIVE TRADE FIGURES:

LATEST THREE MONTHS

JAN-KAR

1980

JAN-MAR

1979

$ MN.

DOMESTIC EXPORTS

(% OF TOTAL EXPORTS)

13 712 (69.4%)

MN.

10 116 (70.6%)

+ 3 596 + 35.6

INCREASE OR

DECREASE

$ MN.

RE-EXPORTS

6 037

4 207

+ 1 830 + 43.5

TOTAL EXPORTS