XN000022-1986-02-04 — Page 10

ON

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1986

THERE WERE 3 332 OUTGOING SHIPS, WITH A TOTAL CAPACITY OF 19.5 MILLION NRT, AN INCREASE OF 382 IN NUMBER AND OF 12 PER CENT IN CAPACITY OVER THE SAME QUARTER IN 1984. THE TOTAL TONNAGE OF CARGO LOADED IN HONG KONG ONTO OUTGOING SHIPS ROSE BY 14 PER CENT. ABOUT 66 PER CENT OF THE DEPARTING SHIPS STAYED IN HONG KONG FOR LESS THAN TWO DAYS.

OF THE CARGO DISCHARGED FROM INCOMING SHIPS, 86 PER CENT

IN TERMS OF TONNAGE WAS IMPORTS AND 14 PER CENT WAS FOR TRANSHIPMENT, OF THE CARGO LOADED ONTO OUTGOING SHIPS, 56 PER CENT WAS EXPORTS (INCLUDING RE-EXPORTS) AND 44 PER CENT WAS FOR TRANSHIPMENT.

THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF LOADING FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS IN TONNAGE TERMS WERE JAPAN (17%), SINGAPORE (15%), THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA (12%) AND CHINA (9%), WHILE THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF DISCHARGE FOR SEABORNE EXPORTS WERE THE U.S. (21%), CHINA (19%), TAIWAN (11%) AND JAPAN (5%).

TRANSHIPMENT CARGO WAS MAINLY LOADED IN THE U.S. (27%) AND CHINA (24%), AND TRANSHIPPED TO CHINA (28%) AND THE U.S. (13%).

COMPARING THE THIRD QUARTER OF 1985 WITH THE SAME QUARTER IN 1984, INCREASES IN TONNAGE WERE NOTED FOR IMPORTS FROM THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA (+47%), AUSTRALIA (+33%), THE U.S. (+26%), TAIWAN (+25%) AND JAPAN (+4%), BUT DECLINES WERE RECORDED FOR IMPORTS FROM CHINA (-22%) AND SINGAPORE (-14%). AS A WHOLE, THE TOTAL TONNAGE OF IMPORTS ROSE BY 9%. AMONG THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES, INCREASES IN CARGO TONNAGE WERE RECORDED IN THE IMPORTS OF COAL, COKE AND BRIQUETTES (+40%) AND IRON AND STEEL (+12%).

(+12%). HOWEVER, DECREASES WERE NOTED FOR IMPORTS OF PETROLEUM, PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND RELATED MATERIALS (-8%), AND CEMENT AND CEMENT CLINKER (-4%).

OVER THE SAME PERIOD, THE TONNAGE OF TOTAL SEABORNE EXPORTS INCREASED BY 5%, INCREASES IN TONNAGE WERE RECORDED FOR SEABORNE EXPORTS TO CHINA (+42%), AND JAPAN (+13%), BUT SLIGHT DECREASES WERE NOTED FOR THOSE TO THE U.S. (-3%) AND TAIWAN (-2%). AMONG THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES, INCREASES WERE NOTED FOR EXPORTS OF INORGANIC CHEMICALS (+301%), METALLIFEROUS ORES AND METAL SCRAP (+73%), VEGETABLES AND FRUIT (+28%), AND PETROLEUM, PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND RELATED MATERIALS (+28%). HOWEVER, A DECLINE WAS RECORDED FOR THE EXPORTS OF TOYS (-2%).

SHIPPING STATISTICS ARE COMPILED PRIMARILY FROM GENERAL DECLARATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE MARINE DEPARTMENT BY SHIPOWNERS OR AUTHORISED SHIPPING AGENTS, AND COVER ALL OCEAN-GOING VESSELS ENTERING AND LEAVING HONG KONG, EXCLUDING YACHTS AND PLEASURE CRAFT. PORT AND CARGO STATISTICS ARE COMPILED FROM OCEAN CARGO MANIFESTS SUPPLIED BY SHIPPING COMPANIES OR AGENTS TO THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT. BECAUSE OF RESOURCE CONSTRAINTS, A SAMPLE OF ALL CONSIGNMENTS LISTED IN THE MANIFESTS IS USED FOR COMPILING THE STATISTICS. THE SAMPLING METHOD IS DESCRIBED IN THE EXPLANATORY NOTES OF THE REPORT.

/MORE DETAILS

Page 10Page 11