XN000022-1983-07-28 — Page 3

THURSDAY, JULY 28, 1983

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+THE OUTLOOK FOR THE U.S. MARKET, WHICH ACCOUNTS FOR SOME 40 PER CENT OF HONG KONG'S EXPORTS, IS PARTICULARLY FAVOURABLE,+ HE SAID.

FORECASTS POINT TO A STEADY EXPANSION OF THE U.S. CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE: AN EQUIVALENT OF HK$5 308.7 MILLION FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, $5 370 MILLION FOR THE SECOND, $5 432 MILLION FOR THE THIRD AND $5 482 MILLION FOR THE FINAL QUARTER OF THE YEAR.

+MUCH OF THIS CONSUMER DEMAND WOULD HAVE TO BE MET BY IMPORTS WHICH SHOULD GIVE US SUBSTANTIAL ROOM FOR OUR EXPORTS TO THE U.S. MARKET, + MR HO SAID.

+CLEARLY, OUR ECONOMY IS AGAIN SHIFTING BACK TO AN EXPORT-LED GROWTH. AS THE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY IS STILL A MAJOR PILLAR OF OUR ECONOMY, THE AUSPICIOUS SIGNS ARE ALREADY WITH US, + MR HO SAID.

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR JUNE 1983

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IN JUNE 1983, DOMESTIC EXPORTS GREW BY 28 PER CENT OR $1 967 MILLION OVER THE SAME MONTH LAST YEAR, TO REACH $8 920 MILLION, ACCORDING TO PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES PUBLISHED TODAY BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

RE-EXPORTS, AT $4 389 MILLION, GREW BY 27 PER CENT OR $938

MILLION.

TOTAL EXPORTS DOMESTIC EXPORTS PLUS RE-EXPORTS - REACHED $13 309 MILLION IN JUNE, REPRESENTING AN INCREASE OF 28 PER CENT OR $2 905 MILLION OVER THE SAME MONTH IN 1982.

WITH IMPORTS AT $14 481 MILLION, AN INCREASE OF 24 PER CENT OR $2 767 MILLION OVER JUNE 1982, THE VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT FOR JUNE THIS YEAR WAS $1 172 MILLION.

NARROWED TO EIGHT

THE VISIBLE TRADE GAP THE PROPORTION OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS NOT COVERED BY THAT OF TOTAL EXPORTS PER CENT FROM 11 PER CENT IN JUNE LAST YEAR.

EXTENDING THE PERIOD OF COMPARISON TO THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR, A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS WAS 13 PER CENT HIGHER THAN IN THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR.

THIS OVERALL GROWTH COMPRISED A 14 PER CENT INCREASE FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND 12 PER CENT INCREASE FOR RE-EXPORTS.

AS THE GROWTH RATE OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS WAS 11 PER CENT, THE VISIBLE TRADE GAP IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR STOOD AT 12 PER CENT, WHICH WAS NARROWER THAN THE 14 PER CENT RECORDED IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1982.

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