XN000022-1988-06-11 — Page 3

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SATURDAY, JUNE 11, 198

SPEAKING "AS ONE WHO HAS ENJOYED AN INSIDER'S

THE BRITISH WIGGHAM SAID BOTH

AND CHINESE GOVERNMENTS SERIOUSLY INDEED THEIR OBLIGATIONS OF ADHERING STRICTLY TO OF THE JOINT DECLARATION.

MR

VIEW" TOOK VERY

THE TERMS

THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP HAD ACHIEVED SUBSTANTIAL PROGRESS IN JOINT DECLARATION VARIOUS AREAS SINCE 1985 AFTER RATIFICATION OF THE BY BOTH GOVERNMENTS.

THESE INCLUDED

AGREEMENTS IN THE AREA OF NATIONALITY AND TRAVEL DOCUMENTS, IN THE CONCLUSION OF SEPARATE AIR SERVICE

BETEEEN AGREEMENTS

HONG KONG AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES, IN THE AND IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A SEPARATE HONG KONG SHIPPING REGISTER; FIELD OF EXTERNAL ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL RELATIONS.

ON THE ECONOMIC FRONT, MR WIGGHAM SAID THE ADVANTAGES WHICH CHINA DERIVED FROM HONG KONG WERE OBVIOUS.

"HONG KONG PACKS A CONSIDERABLE SQUARE MILES AND POPULATION OF 5.6 MILLION.

ECONOMIC

MUSCLE IN ITS 400

"AND HONG KONG 19 BOOMING AND CONTINUING ΤΟ ATTRACT THF CONFIDENCE OF DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN INVESTORS, HE ADDED.

AND 13.6 THE REAL GDP OF HONG KONG GREW 11.2 PER CENT IN 1986

IN PER CENT LAST YEAR WHILE PRIVATE INVESTMENT

PLANT AND MACHINERY ROSE BY 10 PER CENT IN REAL TERMS IN 1986 AND BY 28 PER CENT IN 1987.

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 1987 WAS AS 1.9 PER CENT.

LOW AS

THERE WERE A REMARKABLE NUMBER OF MAJOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

KONG PROJECTS IN HONG

WITH MANY OF THEM HAVING A PAYBACK DATE EXTENDING WELL BEYOND 1997, MR WIGGHAM SAID.

AND

THESE PROJECTS NOT ONLY DEMONSTRATED STRONG PUBLIC SECTOR PRIVATE SECTOR CONFIDENCE IN HONG KONG'S FUTURE, BUT ALSO FURTHER INCREASED THE ENORMOUS IMPORTANCE OF HONG KONG ΤΟ CHINA'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

CHINA WAS HONG KONG'S NUMBER ONE TRADING PARTNER, FOR OVER ONE-QUARTER OF HONG KONG'S TOTAL EXTERNAL TRADE.

ACCOUNTING

PARTNER; OVER

IN TURN, HONG KONG HAD BECOME CHINA'S LARGEST TRADING

KONG ACCOUNTED FOR IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1987, TRADE WITH HONG ONE-QUARTER OF CHINA'S TOTAL EXTERNAL TRADE.

ESTIMATED

INVESTMENTS FROM HONG KONG ACCOUNTED FOR AN CENT OF UTILISED FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN CHINA IN 1986, HE SAID.

60 PER

/CHICAGO WAS