XN000022-1993-04-13 — Page 4

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TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 1993

VOLUME AND PRICE MOVEMENTS OF EXTERNAL TRADE IN JANUARY

THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN JANUARY THIS YEAR WAS 3.3% HIGHER THAN A YEAR EARLIER, ACCORDING TO THE STATISTICS RELEASED TODAY (TUESDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

OVER THE SAME PERIOD, SIGNIFICANT INCREASE OF 28%.

THE VOLUME OF RE-EXPORTS

RECORDED A

TAKING DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS TOGETHER, THE VOLUME OF TOTAL EXPORTS INCREASED BY 21%. IMPORTS INCREASED BY 16% IN VOLUME.

THE GROWTH IN THE VOLUME OF TRADE IS DERIVED FROM THE GROWTH IN TRADE VALUES WITH THE EFFECT OF PRICE CHANGES BEING DISCOUNTED.

AS REGARDS PRICE CHANGES OVER THE SAME PERIOD OF COMPARISON, THE PRICES OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS AND RE-EXPORTS DECREASED BY 0.5% AND 1.5% RESPECTIVELY, IMPORT PRICE DECREASED BY 2.0%.

WHICH

PRICE CHANGES ARE REFLECTED BY CHANGES IN UNIT VALUE ARE COMPILED BASED ON AVERAGE UNIT VALUES OR, FOR COMMODITIES, BASED ON SPECIFIC PRICE DATA.

INDICES, CERTAIN

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THE TERMS OF TRADE INDEX, DEFINED AS THE RATIO OF TOTAL PRICE INDEX TO IMPORT PRICE INDEX, INCREASED BY 0.8% IN JANUARY 1993. OVER JANUARY 1992.

A SPOKESMAN FOR THE DEPARTMENT SAID CAUTION SHOULD BE EXERCISED IN INTERPRETING THE CHANGES IN THE VOLUME OF TRADE FOR A SINGLE MONTH AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH YEAR WHICH MAY BE AFFECTED BY THE TIMING OF THE LUNAR NEW YEAR HOLIDAYS.

COMPARING THE THREE MONTHS ENDING JANUARY 1993 WITH THE THREE MONTHS ENDING JANUARY 1992, THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS DECREASED BY 1.2% WHILE THAT OF RE-EXPORTS INCREASED BY 24%. THE VOLUME OF IMPORTS GREW BY 19%.

THE CHANGES IN THE VALUE, UNIT VALUE AND VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS BY PRINCIPAL COMMODITY GROUP ARE SHOWN IN TABLE 1.

COMPARING JANUARY 1993 WITH JANUARY 1992, COMMODITY GROUPS WHICH RECORDED SUBSTANTIAL INCREASES IN THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS INCLUDED TEXTILE FABRICS (+61%); ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS (+40%); TEXTILE MADE-UPS AND RELATED ARTICLES (+34%); RADIOS OF ALL KINDS (+32%); AND METAL ORES AND SCRAP {+32%).

ON THE OTHER HAND, CONSIDERABLE DECREASES IN THE VOLUME OF DOMESTIC EXPORTS WERE RECORDED FOR TRAVEL GOODS, HANDBAGS AND SIMILAR ARTICLES (-53%); DOMESTIC ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES (-39%); AND FOOTWEAR (-36%).

AS REGARDS DOMESTIC EXPORT PRICES, COMMODITY GROUPS WHICH RECORDED SIGNIFICANT INCREASES INCLUDED FOOTWEAR (+6.8); AND TEXTILE MADE-UPS AND RELATED ARTICLES (+5.8%).

ON THE OTHER HAND, DECREASES IN DOMESTIC EXPORT PRICES WERE RECORDED FOR RADIOS OF ALL KINDS (-9.4%); METAL ORES AND SCRAP

(-5.8%); AND ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS (-5.2%).

/THE CHANGES