XN000022-1988-04-12 — Page 6

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TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 1988

EXTERNAL TRADE STATISTICS FOR FEBRUARY RELEASED

THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT TODAY (TUESDAY) TRADE VALUE STATISTICS FOR FEBRUARY 1988.

RELEASED

COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1987, TOTAL MERCHANDISE TRADE IN FEBRUARY 1988, AT $58,025 MILLION, GREW BY 30 PER CENT IN VALUE TERMS.

37

BY

COMPARED WITH FEBRUARY 1987, DOMESTIC EXPORTS INCREASED BY PER CENT TO $13,641 MILLION IN FEBRUARY 1988 WHILE RE-EXPORTS ROSE 50 PER CENT TO $15,914 MILLION, BRINGING TOTAL EXPORTS IN FEBRUARY 1988 TO $29,555 MILLION, WHICH WAS 43 PER CENT HIGHER THAN FEBRUARY 1987.

IN

ON THE SAME BASIS OF COMPARISON, IMPORTS INCREASED BY 18 PER CENT TO $28,470 MILLION IN FEBRUARY 1988.

CARE SHOULD BE EXERCISED IN INTERPRETING THE CHANGES IN THE VALUE OF BILATERAL TRADE IN ANY SINGLE MONTH, AS THE RESPECTIVE GROWTH RATES FOR INDIVIDUAL MONTHS MAY BE SUBJECT TO CONSIDERABLE

FLUCTUATIONS.

IN PARTICULAR, THE TRADE FIGURES IN THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF THE YEAR ARE USUALLY AFFECTED BY THE TIMING OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR HOLIDAYS, WHICH OCCURRED IN LATE JANUARY LAST YEAR, WHILE THIS YEAR THEY OCCURRED IN MID-FEBRUARY.

DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO ALL MAJOR MARKETS INCREASED IN VALUE BETWEEN FEBRUARY 1987 AND FEBRUARY 1988.

TERMS

SUBSTANTIAL GROWTH WAS RECORDED IN DOMESTIC EXPORTS ΤΟ FRANCE (+92 PER CENT), THE UNITED KINGDOM (+84 PER CENT), SINGAPORE (+50 PER CENT), CANADA (+46 PER CENT) AND THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY (+46 PER CENT).

A 25 PER CENT GROWTH WAS RECORDED FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO KONG'S LARGEST MARKET, THE USA.

HONG

ON THE OTHER HAND, A RELATIVELY MODERATE GROWTH RATE OF 7 CENT WAS RECORDED FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO CHINA.

PER

IMPORTS FROM MOST MAJOR SUPPLIERS INCREASED IN VALUE TERMS IN FEBRUARY 1988 OVER FEBRUARY 1987, ESPECIALLY THOSE FROM THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA (+34 PER CENT), JAPAN (+22 PER CENT), CHINA (+22 PER CENT), FRANCE (+20 PER CENT), TAIWAN (+19 PER CENT) AND SWITZERLAND (+19 PER CENT).

ON THE OTHER HAND, IMPORTS FROM SINGAPORE AND THE USA DECREASED BY 13 PER CENT AND 7 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY.

/RE-EXPORTS TO