XN000022-1980-11-30 — Page 2

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1980

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR OCTOBER 1980

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THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS FOR OCTOBER WAS $9 005 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $6 106 MILLION AND RE-EXPORTS AT $2 899 MILLION. WITH IMPORTS AT $9 572 MILLION, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR THE MONTH WAS $567 MILLION.

COMPARED WITH THE SAME MONTH LAST YEAR, THE FOLLOWING INCREASES BY VALUE WERE RECORDED: $784 MILLION, OR 15 PER CENT FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS- $1 103 MILLION, OR 61 PER CENT FOR RE-EXPORTS- $1 887 MILLION OR 27 PER CENT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS, AND $1 273 MILLION OR 15 PER CENT FOR IMPORTS.

IN OCTOBER THIS YEAR, THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+, THAT IS THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS NOT COVERED BY THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS, WAS 5.9 PER CENT ($567 MILLION)- IN OCTOBER 1979, THE +GAP+ WAS 14.2 PER CENT ($1 181 MILLION).

COMPARING THE FIGURES FOR THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WITH THOSE FOR THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF LAST YEAR, DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAVE INCREASED IN VALUE BY 25 PER CENT, RE-EXPORTS BY 49 PER CENT, TOTAL EXPORTS BY 31 PER CENT AND IMPORTS BY 29 PER CENT.

THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+ FOR THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF THIS YEAR WAS 10.5 PER CENT, NARROWER THAN THE 11.8 PER CENT FOR THE FIRST TEN MONTHS OF 1979.

COMMENTING ON THE OCTOBER TRADE FIGURES, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID THEY WERE ENCOURAGING IN FIVE RESPECTS (FIRSTLY) EVEN AGAINST THE BACKGROUND OF UNCERTAIN WORLD ECONOMIC PROSPECTS THE GROWTH RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAS REMAINED IMPRESSIVE, ALBEIT LESS SO THAN IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR (SECONDLY) THE ENTREPOT TRADE HAS CONTINUED TO EXPAND VERY RAPIDLY SO (THIRDLY) THE GROWTH RATE OF TOTAL EXPORTS HAS REMAINED RAPID- IN ADDITION (FOURTHLY) THE GROWTH RATE OF TOTAL EXPORTS HAS REMAINED HIGHER THAN THAT OF IMPORTS SO THAT (FIFTHLY) THE VISIBLE TRADE +GAP+ HAS NARROWED.

THE FOLLOWING ARE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR HONG KONG'S MERCHANDISE TRADE IN OCTOBER 1980 AS PUBLISHED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY:

MERCHANDISE:

DOMESTIC EXPORTS: $6 106 MILLION

RE-EXPORTS

: $2 899 MILLION

TOTAL EXPORTS

• 89 005 MILLION

IMPORTS

TRADE BALANCE

$9 572 MILLION

: $ 567 MILLION (IN DEFICIT)

/COMPARATIVE