XN000022-1980-10-26 — Page 2

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SUNDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1980

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR SEPTEMBER

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THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY (SUNDAY) PUBLISHED THE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR HONG KONG'S MERCHANDISE TRADE IN SEPTEMBER 1980. THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR SEPTEMBER WAS $8 762 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $5 980 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS AT $2 782 MILLION. WITH IMPORTS AT $9 388 MILLION, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR SEPTEMBER WAS $626 MILLION.

COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH IN 1979, THE FOLLOWING INCREASES BY VALUE WERE RECORDED: $664 MILLION, OR 12 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS- $1 047 MILLION, OR 60 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS- $1 711 MILLION, OR 24 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS- AND $1 741 MILLION OR 23 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.

COMMENTING ON THE SEPTEMBER TRADE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID THAT THE GROWTH RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS CONTINUED TO SLOW DOWN IN SEPTEMBER. THIS SLOWING DOWN HAD STARTED IN JULY SO THAT WHILE THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAD BEEN 33 PER CENT HIGHER IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR THAN IN THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD OF 1979, FOR THE THIRD QUARTER COMPARISON THE GROWTH RATE HAD FALLEN TO 16 PER CENT.

THE SPOKESMAN ADDED THAT RE-EXPORTS HAD CONTINUED TO GROW RAPIDLY. WHILE THE VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR WAS 44 PER CENT HIGHER THAN THAT IN THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD IN 1979, IN THE THIRD QUARTER IT WAS 54 PER CENT HIGHER THAN IN THE THIRD QUARTER OF LAST YEAR.

IN CONSEQUENCE, THE SLOWING DOWN IN THE GROWTH RATE OF TOTAL EXPORTS WAS LESS MARKED THAN THAT OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS. WHILE THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS WAS 36 PER CENT HIGHER IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR THAN IN THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD IN 1979, THE THIRD QUARTER COMPARISON WAS 25 PER CENT.

HE ADDED THAT THE GROWTH RATE OF IMPORTS HAD ALSO SLOWED DOWN. COMPARED WITH AN INCREASE OF 35 PER CENT IN THE VALUE OF IMPORTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR OVER THE CORRESPONDING PERIOD IN 1979, FOR THE THIRD QUARTER THE INCREASE WAS 24 PER CENT.

HE SAID THAT, AS THE GROWTH RATE OF IMPORTS HAD CONTINUED TO BE LESS THAN THAT OF TOTAL EXPORTS, THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+, THAT WAS THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WHICH WAS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS, HAD SHOWN NO SIGN OF WIDENING.

COMPARING THE FIGURES FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WITH THOSE FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS LAST YEAR, DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAVE INCREASED IN VALUE BY 26 PER CENT, RE-EXPORTS BY 47 PER CENT, TOTAL EXPORTS BY 32 PER CENT AND IMPORTS BY 31 PER CENT, THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+ FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WAS 11.1 PER CENT, SLIGHTLY NARROWER THAN THE 11.5 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF 1979.

/THE FILLOAING