XN000022-1990-07-26 — Page 4

THURSDAY, JULY 26, 1990

WHEN ANALYSED BY FLAG OF VESSELS, MAJOR INCREASES WERE RECORDED IN THE NUMBER OF SHIPS REGISTERED IN CHINA (+174), PANAMA (+42), LIBERIA +39), WEST GERMANY (+32), NORWAY (+19) AND THE UNITED KINGDOM (+15), WHILE MAJOR DECREASES WERE RECORDED FOR THOSE REGISTERED IN THE PHILIPPINES { 14) AND JAPAN (-11}.

-

THE NUMBER OF INCOMING SHIPS WITH A CAPACITY OF LESS THAN 10,000 DEADWEIGHT TONS INCREASED BY 210 WHILST THE NUMBER OF THOSE WITH A LARGER CAPACITY INCREASED BY 127.

IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990, THERE WERE 4,437 OUTGOING SHIPS WITH A TOTAL CAPACITY OF 26.2 MILLION NRT, REPRESENTING AN INCREASE OF 322 (OR 8 PER CENT) IN NUMBER AND OF 1.4 MILLION NRT (OR 6 PER CENT) IN CAPACITY OVER THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1989.

THE TOTAL TONHAGE OF CARGO LOADED ONTO OUTGOING SHIPS (ESTIMATED FROM A SAMPLE OF MANIFEST CONSIGNMENTS) ROSE BY 6 PER CENT. ABOUT 69 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 TRANSHIPMENT CARGO. OF THE CARGO LOADED ONTO OUTGOING SHIPS, 61 PER CENT WAS EXPORTS (INCLUDING DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS) AND 39 PER CENT WAS TRANSHIPMENT CARGO.

THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF LOADING FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS IN TONNAGE TERMS WERE SINGAPORE (17 PER CENT), JAPAN (15 PER CENT), SOUTH AFRICA (11 PER CENT), CHINA (11 PER CENT), AUSTRALIA (7 PER CENT), AND TAIWAN (7 PER CENT), WHILE THE MAJOR COUNTRIES OF DISCHARGE FOR SEABORNE EXPORTS WERE THE USA (19 PER CENT), CHINA (15 PER CENT), TAIWAN (14 PER CENT), SINGAPORE (5 PER CENT) AND JAPAN (5 PER CENT).

TRANSHIPMENT CARGO WAS MAINLY LOADED IN CHINA (35 PER CENT) AND THE USA (18 PER CENT), AND WAS MAINLY DISCHARGED IN THE USA (14 PER CENT) AND CHINA (13 PER CENT).

COMPARING THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990 WITH THE FIRST QUARTER 1989, MAJOR INCREASES IN TONNAGE WERE NOTED FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS FROM INDONESIA (+46 PER CENT), MALAYSIA (+40 PER CENT), THE USA CENT) AND CHINA (+11 PER CENT); WHILE MAJOR DECREASES IN TONNAGE NOTED FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS FROM AUSTRALIA (-31 PER CENT), (-28 PER CENT) AND TAIWAN (-20 PER CENT).

OF

(+18

PER

WERE SOUTH KOREA

AS A WHOLE, THE TOTAL TONNAGE OF SEABORNE IMPORTS DROPPED BY PER CENT.

3

AMONG THE PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES, MAJOR INCREASES IN CARGO TONNAGE WERE RECORDED FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS OF LOGS AND TIMBER (+34 PER CENT), CORK AND WOOD MANUFACTURES (EXCLUDING FURNITURE)

PER (+32

CENT),

AND CENT)

ARTIFICIAL

PER RESINS AND PLASTIC MATERIALS (+22 MISCELLANEOUS EDIBLE PRODUCTS (+20 PER CENT); WHILE A MAJOR DECREASE RECORDED FOR SEABORNE IMPORTS OF CEREALS AND CEREAL PREPARATIONS (-23 PER CENT).

WAS

/COMPARING THE