XN000022-1993-09-21 — Page 7

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TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1993

AS I AM ALSO, OF COURSE, FULLY CONSCIOUS THAT WE WILL NEED TO, IT WERE, WORK ALSO IN CLOSE CO-OPERATION WITH THE CHINESE TO ACHIEVE A

MUTUAL

AND CO- GOODWILL SMOOTH

AND TRANSITION,

I HOPE THAT WITH OPERATION, WE WILL TOGETHER BE ABLE TO ENSURE THAT THE NEXT FEW WILL IN FACT ACHIEVE A SMOOTH TRANSITION AND THAT THE FUTURE FOR KONG AFTER 1997, WILL BE A STABLE AND PROSPEROUS ONE.

FINALLY, LET ME JUST TACKLE ONE PARTICULAR CONCERN. FROM TIME TO TIME IN THE MEDIA THAT MY RELATIONSHIP WITH SEEMS NOT TO BE ALL THAT I WOULD WISH IT TO BE.

YEARS HONG

I READ THE MEDIA

MAYBE YOU ONLY TEND AND DEFEND

ΤΟ SEK ONE SIDE OF ME, WHICH IS WHEN I COME OUT AND TRY GOVERNMENT POLICY. I HAVE ALWAYS HELD THE VIEW THAT AS A SENIOR CIVIL CONSIDER VERY CAREFULLY SERVANT, YOU HAVE FIRST OF ALL A DUTY TO

POLICIES, BEFORE YOU FORMULATE POLICIES, AND HAVING FORMULATED THOSE

PUBLIC AND то ΤΟ TRY AND COMMUNICATE AND TO EXPLAIN THESE TO THE

WAY MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL AND TO DEFEND THEM IN THE BEST

MEAN THAT I THAT DOESN'T, OF COURSE,

AM THAT YOU POSSIBLY CAN.

STANCE. INTRANSIGENT OR THAT I AM INFLEXIBLE AND REFUSE TO CHANGE MY

ΤΟ TRY WOULD LIKE I

AND IF I AM NOT DOING THIS, I WILL DO MY BEST

AND I AND ACHIEVE THAT I WOULD LIKE YOU TO, IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS AM SURE THAT IN MY NEW OFFICE I WILL HAVE MORE CONTACTS WITH SINCERELY HOPE I WILL THAT YOU WILL PERHAPS SEE THE SOFTER SIDE

-

-

-

YOU, I

OF

ME.

0

CONSUMER PRICE INDICES FOR AUGUST

IN

TODAY

THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (A) IN AUGUST WAS 8.5% HIGHER THAN

MONTH SAME

LAST YEAR, ACCORDING ΤΟ

RELEASED FIGURES (TUESDAY) BY THE CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT.

THE

ALTHOUGH THIS INCREASE WAS SLIGHTLY FASTER THAN THE INCREASE OF 8.6% 8.2% IN JULY, IT WAS SIMILAR TO THE INCREASES OF 8.5% IN MAY AND IN JUNE.

A GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID CONSUMER PRICE INFLATION REMAINED RELATIVELY STABLE IN RECENT MONTHS.

"THE HIGHER YEAR-ON-YEAR RATE OF INCREASE IN THE AUGUST THAN IN JULY WAS MAINLY DUE TO FASTER INCREASES IN THE OF SALT-WATER FISH AND FRESH VEGETABLES."

CPI(A)

IN PRICES

OF

"TAKING THE FIRST EIGHT MONTHS TOGETHER, THE YEAR-ON-YEAR INCREASE TN THE

THIS IS CPI(A) AVERAGED AT 8.5%. PERCENTAGE POINT BELOW THE RECENTLY REVISED FORECAST INFLATION RATE OF 9% FOR 1993 AS A WHOLE, HE ADDED.

RATE

HALF

OF

A

THE CP1(B) AND THE HANG SENG CP1 WERE HIGHER BY 8.5% AND

IN AUGUST RESPECTIVELY

THAN IN THE SAMB MONTH LAST YEAR. INCREASES WERE THE SAME AS THOSE IN JULY.

9.2% THESE

EXPENDITURE

SHOWED THIS WAS

THE COMPOSITE CPI, WHICH IS COMPILED BASED ON THE COMBINED

PATTERN OF HOUSEHOLDS COVERED BY THE THREE CPI'S, AN INCREASE OF 8.7% IN AUGUST OVER THE SAME MONTH LAST YEAR. SLIGHTLY HIGHER THAN THE CORRESPONDING INCREASE OF 8.6% IN JULY.

/COMPARING AUGUST