XN000022-1991-05-24 — Page 5

4

FRIDAY, MAY 24, 1991

H

'WE ARE DETERMINED TO DO WHAT WE CAN TO ALLEVIATE THỊ INFLATIONARY

WITHOUT IMPAIRING MARKET EFFICIENCY PRESSURES ECONOMIC VITALITY AND FLEXIBILITY.

"THE

FINANCIAL

SIR SECRETARY,

PIERS

STATEMENT DURING THE DEBATE ON INFLATION IN THE NEXT WEDNESDAY (MAY 29), HE SAID."

AND

CURRENT OUR

JACOBS,

LEGISLATIVE

WILL MAKE A COUNCIL

MR TANG

ON THE SAID THAT

BASIS OF THE

INFORMATION,

REVIEW HAD BEEN MADE OF THE FORECASTS A DOMESTIC PRODUCT (GDP) AND OF PRICE TRENDS FOR 1991.

THE

LATEST AVAILABLE

OF

GROSS

"AS

IN

SEVERAL REAL

A RESULT OF THIS REVIEW, ADJUSTMENTS WERE MADE TO COMPONENT FORECASTS OF THE GDP, BUT THE FORECAST GROWTH RATE

HE SAID. TERMS OF THE GDP REMAINS UNCHANGED AT 3.5%,

IS,

HOWEVER,

OF

9.5%,

HAVING

"THE FORECAST RATE OF INCREASE IN THE CPI(A) REVISED UPWARDS TO 11%, FROM THE EARLIER FORECAST REGARD TO THE ACTUAL INFLATION FIGURES IN THE FIRST FEW MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, MR TANG SAID.

·

IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1991, DOMESTIC EXPORTS GREW BY ABOUT 2% IN REAL TERMS OVER A YEAR EARLIER.

"THIS INCREASE WAS LARGELY DUE то

PRICE IMPROVED THE THE KONG'S PRODUCTS AS OF HONG

HONG KONG DOLLAR COMPETITIVENESS DEPRECIATED ALONG WITH THE US DOLLAR IN THE LATTER PART OF LAST YEAR, MR TANG SAID.

A

DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO THE VARIOUS MAJOR MARKETS, HOWEVER,

GERMANY MIXED

DOMESTIC EXPORTS TO CHINA, PERFORMANCE. UNITED KINGDOM INCREASED, AND THE EARLIER DECLINE IN DOMESTIC TO JAPAN APPEARED TO HAVE STABILIZED SOMEWHAT.

"BUT

DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECLINE," MR TANG POINTED OUT.

!

41

SHOWED

AND THE

EXPORTS

ΤΟ

THE UNITED STATES CONTINUED

ΤΟ

"AS A RESULT OF THIS DECLINE, THE SHARE OF THE UNITED STATES IN FIRST THE TOTAL VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS FELL FURTHER, TO 24% IN THE QUARTER OF 1991, FROM 29% BOTH IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990 THE YEAR AS A WHOLE," HE SAID.

AND FOR

THE GROWTH RATE OF RE-EXPORTS REMAINED ROBUST, AT ABOUT 22% REAL TERMS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1991 OVER A YEAR EARLIER.

AS

IN

FURTHER,

FASTER RATE THAN CONTINUED TO RISE AT A MUCH RE-EXPORTS DOMESTIC EXPORTS, THEIR SHARE IN THE TOTAL EXPORTS INCREASED TO 68% IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1991, FROM 65% FOR 1990 AS A WHOLE.

THE CONTINUED

OUTWARD

DEMAND FOR 28% IN

"LARGELY

BY SUPPORTED

OF EXPANSION PROCESSING ACTIVITIES ACROSS THE BORDER AND AN IMPROVED IMPORTS IN CHINA, RE-EXPORTS TO CHINA CONTINUED TO SURGE, BY VALUE TERMS IN THE FIRST QUARTER,' MR TANG SAID.

LARGEST 58%

OF

"CHINA REMAINED THE LARGEST MARKET FOR AS WELL AS THE

AND FOR 28% SOURCE OF

ACCOUNTING KONG'S HONG

RE-EXPORTS, RESPECTIVELY OF THE TOTAL VALUE OF RE-EXPORTS IN THE FIRST QUARTER THIS YEAR, HE ADDED.

++

/IMPORTS ROSE