XN000022-1988-11-25 — Page 6

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1988

5

THIRD QUARTER ECONOMIC REPORT RELEASED

THIRD

IN

ECONOMY SHOWED THE HONG KONG

FURTHER GROWTH

THE IN

LINE WITH QUARTER OF 1988, IN

A HIGHER GROWTH RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS THAN IN THE SECOND QUARTER, AND A CONTINUED RAPID INCREASE RE-EXPORTS.

RATE OF

THE LABOUR MARKET REMAINED TIGHT, WITH THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

THE CONCURRENTLY, STAYING AT A VERY LOW

INFLATION

ROSE FURTHER.

LEVEL.

THIRD

QUARTER SERVICES

THESE DEVELOPMENTS ARE DESCRIBED IN THE ECONOMIC REPORT 1988 RELEASED TODAY (FRIDAY) BY THE ECONOMIC BRANCH.

USEFUL IN THE PROCESS OF PREPARING THIS REPORT,

ECONOMIC REVIEW ADVICE WERE RECEIVED FROM THE CHAIRED BY THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY AND LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL IN ITS MEMBERSHIP.

HAS

COMMENTS AND COMMITTEE. WHICH IS OF THE MEMBERS

DOMESTIC EXPORTS GREW BY ABOUT 8 PER CENT IN REAL TERMS IN THIRD QUARTER OVER THE SAME QUARTER LAST YEAR.

THE

CENT THIS IS HIGHER THAN THE YEAR-ON-YEAR GROWTH RATE OF 6 PER

SECOND QUARTER, BUT RECORDED IN THE

REPRESENTS A SLOW-DOWN WHEN PER CENT IN THE COMPARED WITH THE CORRESPONDING GROWTH RATES OF 11 FIRST QUARTER AND 23 PER CENT FOR 1987 AS A WHOLE.

THE

OF

EXTERNAL

THE SLOW-DOWN IN THE GROWTH RATE OF OVERALL IMPORTS IN SOME

OVERSEAS MAJOR

MARKETS AND THE

ON THE EFFECT

IN COMPETITIVENESS OF HONG KONG'S PRODUCTS AS THE US DOLLAR FIRMED UP

PROBABLY AFFECTED HONG KONG'S THE EARLIER MONTHS OF THIS YEAR HAVE RECENT DOMESTIC EXPORT PERFORMANCE.

OF THE LARGE

CURRENT INFORMATION ON THE ORDER-BOOK POSITIONS MANUFACTURERS AND ON THE QUANTITY OF ELECTRICITY CONSUMED BY RATE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS INDUSTRIAL USERS SUGGESTS THAT THE GROWTH WILL PROBABLY BE MODERATE IN THE FOURTH QUARTER.

TREND

IN

OF RECENT

RETAINED IMPORTS SEMI-MANUFACTURES SUGGESTS THAT THERE MAY BE

HOWEVER, MATERIALS AND INCREASE.

THE

HAW

AS REGARDS DOMESTIC DEMAND, INCREASED HOUSEHOLD INCOMES SUPPORTED A HIGH LEVEL OF LOCAL CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE.

IN THE VOLUME OF RETAIL A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE

SALES WAS RECORDED IN THE "HIRD QUARTER OF 1988 OVER THE SAME QUARTER LAST YEAR.

GOODS WAS

UP TO THE THIRD QUARTER, INVESTMENT DEMAND REMAINED STRONG ALTHOUGH THE OVERALL GROWTH RATE OF EXPENDITURE ON CAPITAL NOT AS HIGH AS IN 1987.

/AS AN