XN000022-1989-03-23 — Page 2

THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 1989

PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES FOR FEBRUARY RELEASED

THE YEAR-ON-YEAR GROWTH RATES OF RE-EXPORTS AND IMPORTS GROWTH CONTINUED TO BE SUBSTANTIAL IN FEBRUARY 1989, BUT ONLY A SMALL WAS RECORDED FOR DOMESTIC EXPORTS.

THIS 18 SHOWN IN THE PROVISIONAL TRADE FIGURES RELEASED TODAY (THURSDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT,

IN FEBRUARY

HIGHER

BY

WAS 1989

$14.042 THAN IN FEBRUARY $6,471

THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS MILLION, $401 MILLION OR ONLY 2.9 PER CENT 1988, WHILE THE VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS INCREASED 40.7 PER CENT TO $22,385 MILLION.

MILLION OR

THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS (DOMESTIC EXPORTS PLUS RE-EXPORTS), OR 23.3 AT $36,427 MILLION IN FEBRUARY 1989, WAS THUS $6,872 MILLION PER CENT HIGHER THAN IN FEBRUARY 1988.

THE VALUE OF IMPORTS GREW BY 35.1 PER CENT OR $10,002 OVER A YEAR EARLIER, TO $38,472 MILLION IN FEBRUARY 1989.

MILLION

то EQUIVALENT

A VISIBLE TRADE DEFICIT OF $2,045 MILLION, PER CENT OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS, WAS RECORDED IN FEBRUARY 1989.

EQUIVALENT THIS COMPARES WITH A SURPLUS OF $1,084 MILLION, 3.8 PER CENT OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS, RECORDED IN FEBRUARY 1988.

5.3

TO

YEAR HOLIDAYS, IT IS IN VIEW OF THE TIMING OF THE LUNAR NEW USEFUL TO EXAMINE THE COMBINED TRADE FIGURES FOR JANUARY AND FEBRUARY.

WAS THE VALUE OF TOTAL EXPORTS IN THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1989

$31,304 MILLION AND $79,943 MILLION, MADE UP OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF RE-EXPORTS OF $48,639 MILLION.

OF 1988, IN VALUE TERMS COMPARED WITH THE FIRST TWO MONTHS

OR 24.1 PER CENT, DOMESTIC TOTAL EXPORTS GREW BY $15,548 MILLION

BY $14,361 EXPORTS BY $1,187 MILLION OR 3.9 PER CENT, AND RE-EXPORTS MILLION OR 41.9 PER CENT.

$19,987 DEFICIT

OF IMPORTS GREW BY OVER THE SAME PERIOD, THE VALUE MILLION OR 32.4 PER CENT, TO $81,607 MILLION. A VISIBLE TRADE OF $1,664 MILLION, EQUIVALENT TO 2.0 PER CENT OF THE VALUE OF IMPORTS, WAS RECORDED IN THE FIRST TWO MONTHS OF 1989,

COMMENTING ON THESE FIGURES,

A

GOVERNMENT

SECRETARIAT

FURTHER INDICATIONS FROM THE TRADE SPOKESMAN SAID THAT SUBJECT TO

THE GROWTH RATE FIGURES FOR THE COMING MONTHS, IT SEEMED CLEAR THAT OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS WAS ON A DECELERATING TREND.

AGAINST THIS, HOWEVER, THE GROWTH RATE OF RETAINED IMPORTS STILL SIGNIFICANT.

WAS

/THE SPOKESMAN