XN000022-1985-01-03 — Page 4

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 3, 1985

BEFORE SUBMITTING THE NOMINATION PAPER, A CANDIDATE IS ALSO REQUIRED TO PLACE A $1 000 DEPOSIT WITH THE TREASURY, WHICH WILL BE RETURNED TO THE CANDIDATE IF HE POLLS MORE THAN ONE-EIGHTH OF THE VOTES CAST, EVEN IF HE IS NOT ELECTED.

IF A CANDIDATE STANDS UNOPPOSED FOR A CONSTITUENCY IN THE ELECTIONS, HE OR SHE WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY DECLARED AS HAVING BEEN ELECTED AND NO VOTING WILL BE REQUIRED.

TO FAMILIARISE THE CANDIDATES WITH ELECTION PROCEDURES AND THE CONSTITUENCY IN WHICH HE OR SHE IS RUNNING, A SET OF PAPERS ON ELECTORAL LEGISLATION AND RELEVANT PART OF THE FINAL REGISTER OF ELECTORS WILL BE GIVEN TO THEM.

THE TOTAL NUMBER OF REGISTERED ELECTORS CONTAINED IN THE FINAL REGISTER TO BE PUBLISHED TOMORROW (FRIDAY) STANDS AT 1 421 391, OF WHOM 426 070 ARE RESIDENTS IN THE NEW TERRITORIES AND 995 321 IN THE URBAN AREAS.

COMPARED WITH THE 899 440 ELECTORS (198 272 IN THE NEW TERRITORIES AND 701 168 IN THE URBAN AREAS) AT THE START OF THE 1984 REGISTRATION EXERCISE, THE NEW TOTAL REPRESENTS AN INCREASE OF 58 PER CENT.

PRICE AND VOLUME MOVEMENTS OF

OCTOBER EXTERNAL TRADE RELEASED ***

DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS ROSE BY 10 PER CENT AND 24 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY IN VOLUME TERMS IN OCTOBER 1984, COMPARED WITH OCTOBER 1983, ACCORDING TO FIGURES RELEASED TODAY (THURSDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

TOTAL EXPORTS - DOMESTIC EXPORTS PLUS RE-EXPORTS - INCREASED BY 15 PER CENT. IMPORTS INCREASED BY EIGHT PER CENT IN VOLUME TERMS.

PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS ROSE BY NINE PER CENT AND 11 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY, SO THAT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS, PRICES WERE UP BY 10 PER CENT IN OCTOBER 1984, COMPARED WITH OCTOBER 1983. PRICES OF IMPORTS ROSE BY THREE PER CENT,

AS A RESULT, THE TERMS OF TRADE INDEX (EXPRESSED AS A RATIO OF THE TOTAL EXPORT PRICE INDEX TO THE IMPORT PRICE INDEX) ROSE BY SIX PER CENT.

A COMPARISON OF THE FIRST 10 MONTHS OF 1984 WITH THE SAME PERIOD OF 1983 SHOWS THAT DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS GREW BY 21 PER CENT AND 31 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY IN VOLUME TERMS, WHILE IMPORTS GREW BY 16 PER CENT. OVER THE PERIOD, THE PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS. RE-EXPORTS AND IMPORTS ROSE BY 14 PER CENT. 15 PER CENT AND 13 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY.

/A COMPARISON