XN000022-1983-07-28 — Page 2

THURSDAY, JULY 28, 1983

EXPORTS ON TAKE-OFF

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HONG KONG'S EXPORT TRADE IS NOW CLEARLY ON THE TAKE-OFF AND INDICATIONS ARE 1983 WILL BE A YEAR OF VIGOROUS GROWTH.

THIS COMMENT WAS MADE TODAY (THURSDAY) BY THE SECRETARY FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY, MR E.P. HO, ON THE BASIS OF THE LATEST STATISTICS.

DOMESTIC EXPORTS AT $8 920 MILLION LAST MONTH WERE A HEFTY 28 PER CENT INCREASE OVER THE SAME MONTH IN 1982 AND RE-EXPORTS OF $4 389 MILLION WERE 27 PER CENT UP OVER THE YEAR-EARLIER LEVEL, MAKING A COMBINED GROWTH OF 28 PER CENT.

+THIS IS BY FAR THE LARGEST MONTHLY INCREASE FOR THE FIRST HALF OF 1983 AFTER A RATHER MILD AND TENTATIVE RECOVERY AT THE TURN OF THE YEAR,+ MR HO POINTED OUT.

IN JANUARY, HONG KONG'S DOMESTIC EXPORTS NOTCHED A MERE 3.2 PER CENT INCREASE OVER THE SAME MONTH IN 1982 AMID GLIMMER ING SIGNS THAT THE U.S. ECONOMY WAS EMERGING FROM THE RECESSIONARY WOOD.

BUT AS THE U.S. RECOVERY BECAME MORE SUSTAINED, PULLING UP SOME OF THE OTHER MAJOR ECONOMIES, HONG KONG RESPONDED WITH A STEADY MONTH-TO-MONTH INCREASE IN ITS EXPORTS, MR HO SAID.

+UNLIKE THE EARLY MONTHS OF THE YEAR, THE EXPANSION OF OUR EXTERNAL TRADE HAS BECOME MORE WIDELY SPREAD GEOGRAPHICALLY OVER THE PAST THREE MONTHS, WHICH IN ITSELF IS HEALTHY.

H +THIS IS CLEARLY SHOWN BY OUR QUARTERLY DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO OUR THREE LARGEST MARKETS THE U.S., WEST CERMANY AND THE UK WHEN COMPARED WITH THE PERFORMANCE IN THE SAME QUARTER LAST YEAR, + MR HO SAID.

ON THIS COMPARATIVE BASIS, HONG KONG'S DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO THE U.S. IN THE FIRST QUARTER GREW BY 10.2 PER CENT AND TO WEST GERMANY BY 2.3 PER CENT. BUT EXPORTS TO THE UK WERE DOWN BY 4.9 PER CENT.

IN THE SECOND QUARTER, THE FIGURES SHOW AN INCREASE OF 14 PER CENT TO THE U.S.. 5.7 PER CENT TO WEST GERMANY AND, IMPORTANTLY, 8.6 PER CENT TO BRITAIN.

THE TURN-AROUND IN THE CASE OF BRITAIN WAS PARTICULARLY ENCOURAGING, MR HO REMARKED.

LOOKING AHEAD, MR HO SAID THAT HE WAS CONFIDENT THAT THE UPSURGE WOULD BE MAINTAINED.

/+THE OUTLUN