XN000022-1985-11-04 — Page 2

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1985

PRICE, VOLUME CHANGES IN AUGUST EXTERNAL TRADE

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COMPARING THE FIRST EIGHT MONTHS OF 1985 WITH THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR, THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECLINED BY SEVEN PER CENT WHILE THAT OF RE-EXPORTS GREW BY 34 PER CENT, GIVING AN INCREASE OF SEVEN PER CENT IN THE VOLUME OF TOTAL EXPORTS, ACCORDING TO STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY (MONDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

IMPORTS INCREASED BY SEVEN PER CENT IN VOLUME TERMS. OVER THE SAME PERIOD, THE PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS ROSE BY ONE PER CENT AND TWO PER CENT RESPECTIVELY WHILE THOSE OF IMPORTS DROPPED BY THREE PER CENT.

PRICES ARE BASED ON UNIT VALUES WHICH DO NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT CHANGES IN THE COMPOSITION OR QUALITY OF GOODS TRADED, EXCEPT FOR SOME SELECTED COMMODITIES FOR WHICH SPECIFICATION PRICE INDEXES ARE COMPILED. VOLUMES OF TRADE ARE DERIVED FROM TRADE VALUES BY DISCOUNTING THE EFFECT OF PRICE CHANGES.

COMPARING AUGUST 1985 WITH AUGUST 1984, THE VOLUME OF TOTAL EXPORTS INCREASED BY ONE PER CENT, WITH AN INCREASE OF 24 PER CENT IN THE VOLUME OF RE-EXPORTS MORE THAN OFFSETTING THE DECLINE OF 11 PER CENT IN THAT OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS, IMPORTS INCREASED BY FIVE PER CENT IN VOLUME TERMS.

PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS DROPPED BY TWO PER CENT AND ONE PER CENT RESPECTIVELY IN AUGUST 1985 COMPARED WITH AUGUST 1984, SO THAT FOR TOTAL EXPORTS, PRICES DECREASED BY ONE

AS A PER CENT. PRICES OF IMPORTS DECREASED BY FOUR PER CENT. RESULT, THE TERMS OF TRADE INDEX (EXPRESSED AS A RATIO OF THE TOTAL EXPORT PRICE INDEX TO THE IMPORT PRICE INDEX) ROSE BY THREE PER CENT.

EXTENDING THE PERIOD OF COMPARISON TO THE TWELVE MONTHS ENDING AUGUST 1985 WITH THE TWELVE MONTHS ENDING AUGUST 1984 THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECREASED BY TWO PER CENT, WHILE THAT OF RE-EXPORTS INCREASED BY 32 PER CENT, GIVING AN INCREASE OF 10 PER CENT IN THE VOLUME OF TOTAL EXPORTS.

MEANWHILE, THE VOLUME OF IMPORTS ROSE BY EIGHT PER CENT. PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS ROSE, ON AVERAGE, BY FOUR PER CENT AND FIVE PER CENT RESPECTIVELY, WHILE THAT OF IMPORTS DROPPED BY ONE PER CENT,

THE CHANGES IN THE VALUE, UNIT VALUE AND VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS BY COMMODITY GROUP FOR AUGUST AND FOR JANUARY-AUGUST OF 1985 AS COMPARED WITH THE CORRESPONDING PERIODS IN 1984 ARE SHOWN IN TABLE 1.

/AS CAN