XN000022-1991-05-31 — Page 6

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FRIDAY, MAY 31, 1991

OF

ON THE OTHER HAND, SEVERAL MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES RECORDED DECREASES IN THE VALUE OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN THE FIRST QUARTER

1991 AS COMPARED WITH THE SAME QUARTER OF 1990.

AMONG THEM WERE : PLASTIC PRODUCTS (-$515 MILLION OR -25.5%); LEATHER AND LEATHER PRODUCTS, EXCEPT FOOTWEAR AND WEARING APPAREL (-$45 MILLION OR -11.5%); FOOTWEAR, EXCEPT RUBBER, PLASTIC AND FOOTWEAR (-$42 MILLION OR -21.0%); TOBACCO MANUFACTURES (-$38 OR -5.4%); AND TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT (-$35 MILLION OR -55.5%}.

WOODEN MILLION

EXPORTS

OUTSIDE THE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES, DOMESTIC ORIGINATING FROM THE FISHING INDUSTRY DECREASED BY $5 MILLION OR 3.8% AS COMPARED WITH THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990, WHILE DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF ELECTRICITY INCREASED BY $56 MILLION OR 43.7%.

THE ABOVE STATISTICS ON DOMESTIC EXPORTS ANALYSED BY INDUSTRIAL ORIGIN ARE DERIVED BY RE-GROUPING ALL SIX-DIGIT MERCHANDISE EXPORT ITEMS UNDER THE EXTERNAL TRADE CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM ACCORDING TO THE INDUSTRIES IN WHICH THESE MERCHANDISE ITEMS ARE NORMALLY PRODUCED. TRANSACTIONS IN GOLD AND SPROJE ARE EXCLUDED.

AS FROM 1991, THE HONG KONG STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION (HSIC), WHICH IS BASICALLY THE UNITED NATIONS INTERNATIONAL STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION OF ALL ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES (ISIC) AFTER ADAPTATION ΤΟ CATER FOR THE LOCAL SITUATION, IS INTRODUCED FOR CLASSIFYING THE LOCAL INDUSTRIES.

THE HSIC IS ΤΟ BE DISTINGUISHED FROM THE UNITED NATIONS STANDARD INTERNATIONAL TRADE CLASSIFICATION (SITC) USED IN THE REGULAR TRADE STATISTICS REPORTS IN THAT THE FORMER IS MORE RELATED TO PRODUCTION PROCESSES WHEREAS THE LATTER IS MORE GEARED TO END USES OF PRODUCTS.

AS A MORE UP-TO-DATE AND STANDARDISED INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION ADOPTED BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT, THE HSIC TAKES ACCOUNT OF THE CURRENT INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT AND ALSO ENABLES BETTER COMPARABILITY AMONG THE STATISTICS COMPILED BY THE DEPARTMENT.

ARE

FOLLOWING THE INTRODUCTION OF THE HSIC IN 1991, THE ABOVE STATISTICS ON DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1991 CLASSIFIED BY MAJOR INDUSTRY GROUPS BASED ON THE HSIC.

ONES, THE

IN ORDER TO COMPARE THE 1991 FIGURES WITH THE 1990 VALUE CHANGES AND PERCENTAGE CHANGES BETWEEN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1991 AND THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990 FOR THE RESPECTIVE MAJOR INDUSTRY GROUPS ARE DERIVED AFTER RE-GROUPING THE VALUES OF EXPORT ITEMS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1990 ACCORDING TO THE HSIC.

THE HSIC-BASED STATISTICS MAY NOT BE STRICTLY COMPARABLE WITH THE DOMESTIC EXPORT STATISTICS CLASSIFIED BY INDUSTRIAL ORIGIN FOR EARLIER QUARTERS DUE TO THE CHANGE IN INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION.

CAUTION SHOULD BE TAKEN WHEN REFERRING TO THESE DOMESTIC EXPORT STATISTICS CLASSIFIED BY INDUSTRIAL ORIGIN,

/CERTAIN MERCHANDISE