XN000022-1984-09-26 — Page 9

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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1984

+AS YOU MIGHT EXPECT, HONG KONG PLAYS A LEADING ROLE IN ALL THIS ACTIVITY AS THE MAIN FINANCIAL CENTRE AND ONE OF THE PRINCIPAL MANUFACTURING AND TRADING CENTRES IN THE REGION,+ MR JOHNSON SAID.

CITING FIGURES ON HONG KONG'S EXTERNAL TRADE, MR JOHNSON SAID THAT OF THE TOP EIGHT MARKETS FOR HONG KONG'S EXPORTS, SIX OF THEM - THE U.S., CHINA, JAPAN, CANADA, AUSTRALIA AND SINGAPORE ARE IN THE PACIFIC.

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LAST YEAR, IMPORTS VALUED AT US$18 BILLION OR OVER 80 PER CENT OF HONG KONG'S TOTAL IMPORTS CAME FROM PACIFIC RIM COUNTRIES, HEADED BY CHINA, JAPAN, THE U.S., TAIWAN AND SINGAPORE.

+BEHIND ALL THIS, OF COURSE, LIES THE BIGGEST AND POTENTIALLY THE MOST POWERFUL ECONOMY OF THEM ALL - CHINA,+ MR JOHNSON SAID.

THE ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HONG KONG AND CHINA WAS STABLE, OF LONG STANDING AND BROUGHT BENEFIT TO BOTH SIDES, HE SAID.

HONG KONG TOOK ABOUT 25 PER CENT OF CHINA'S TOTAL VISIBLE EXPORTS. AND CHINA WAS NOW THE THIRD LARGEST MARKET FOR HONG KONG'S

CHINA DOMESTIC EXPORTS AFTER THE U.S. AND THE UNITED KINGDOM. TOOK US$581 MILLION OF SUCH EXPORTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR. CHINA WAS ALSO HONG KONG'S LARGEST RE-EXPORT MARKET, TAKING US$1.6 BILLION WORTH, 22 PER CENT OF HONG KONG'S TOTAL RE-EXPORTS LAST YEAR. HONG KONG'S RE-EXPORTS TO CHINA HAD INCREASED OVER NINE TIMES IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS.

ON THE INDUSTRIAL FRONT, A LARGE NUMBER OF HONG KONG COMPANIES, BOTH LOCAL AND OVERSEAS OWNED, HAD MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS IN CHINA. IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, IT WAS ESTIMATED THAT DURING THE PAST FOUR YEARS, CHINA HAD INVESTED ABOUT US$4 BILLION IN HONG KONG IN A NUMBER OF FIELDS, INCLUDING TRADE, TRANSPORTATION, CONSTRUCTION, REAL ESTATE, MANUFACTURING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES.

+CHINA HAS MADE NO SECRET OF THE FACT THAT HONG KONG HAS AN IMPORTANT ROLE TO PLAY IN THE FOUR MODERNISATIONS. FOR ITS PART, HONG KONG IS A SOPHISTICATED MODERN CITY WITH FIRST CLASS FINANCË, COMMUNICATIONS AND OTHER SERVICES.

+WE HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF DOING BUSINESS WITH CHINA, AND AS A RESULT OF OUR ACCUMULATED EXPERIENCE, ARE PERFECTLY PLACED TO OFFER A UNIQUE SERVICE TO THOSE FROM ELSEWHERE WHO ARE SEEKING TO ESTABLISH CONTACTS WITH CHINA FOR THE FIRST TIME,+ MR JOHNSON SAID.

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