XN000022-1994-06-23 — Page 10

THURSDAY, JUNE 23, 1994

THERE

REGION WAS

IN 1993, HONG KONG'S TOTAL TRADE WITH ECONOMIES IN THE GREW

IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1994 ALONE, BY 13 PER CENT. ANOTHER 10 PER CENT TO 11 PER CENT GROWTH, MISS YUE SAID.

FOR

THE ACCUMULATION OF MANAGEMENT KNOW-HOW AND CONTACTS WITH EMERGING MARKETS IN ASIA MAKES HONG KONG AN EXCELLENT LAUNCH-PAD THESE MARKETS.

SET

THIS HAD BEEN RECOGNISED BY MANY MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT SOME 1,500 OVERSEAS COMPANIES HAD REGIONAL HEADQUARTERS AND REPRESENTATIONAL OFFICES IN HONG KONG, YUE SAID.

AS

UP

MISS

SHE NOTED THAT SUBSTANTIAL TRADE AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES ALSO EXISTED IN THE STARTLING GROWTH OF HONG KONG'S RE-EXPORT TRADE.

HONG KONG "IN THE LAST DECADE, TOTAL RE-EXPORT TRADE BETWEEN AND CHINA GREW BY NINE-FOLD, FROM US$3.6 BILLION TO US$35.2 BILLION.

YEAR, HONG

"LAST

KONG RE-EXPORTED GOODS

FROM BILLION

CHINA TO THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, AND US$3.7 BILLION FROM THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY TO CHINA,

AT VALUED

*

VALUED GOODS

MISS YUE SAID.

US$14.3 AT

OF

WAS

GEOGRAPHICAL ADVANTAGE AMPLE REFLECTION OF THE THIS HONG KONG AS THE GATEWAY TO CHINA AND THE WINDOW FOR CHINA TO THE REST OF THE WORLD, SHE SAID.

-

TRADE SANCTIONS IMPAIR FREE TRADE D-G OF TRADE

THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF TRADE, MR TONY MILLER, TODAY (THURSDAY) EMPHASISED THE IMPORTANCE OF FREE TRADE AND DENOUNCED THE USE OF TRADE SANCTIONS AS

AND A LEVER FOR IMPROVING LABOUR RIGHTS PROTECTION.

OF

ENVIRONMENTAL

ENGINE "WHATEVER THEIR THE

HE HAILED FREE TRADE AS "THE MOST EFFICIENT AND DYNAMIC

AND WARNED THAT GROWTH THERE COULD POSSIBLY BE, MOTIVATION,

LIKE SAND IN SANCTIONS,

A GEARBOX, IMPAIR EFFICIENCY OF THAT MACHINE.

TRADE

MR MILLER

MULTILATERAL

WAS

Th

IN

WAY FORWARD SPEAKING HIS THOUGHTS ON THE TRADE DISCUSSIONS LINKING TRADE AND ENVIRONMENTAL TO THE POLICIES, AND TRADE AND COMPETITION POLICIES, IN AN ADDRESS

CANADA BUSINESS ASSOCIATION IN TORONTO.

HONG KONG

-

UNDERLINING

WORKING

USE

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF FREE TRADE

HE SPOKE INTERNATIONALLY" AS HE TERMED 17,

THE

OF TRADE SANCTIONS FOR NON-TRADE ENDS AND SHARED VIEWS RECENTLY EXPRESSED BY THE CANADIAN TRADE MACLAREN.

IN

"THE FREE MARKET STRONGLY AGAINST SAID HONG KONG MINISTER, MR ROY

LABOUR

AND

HARDLY

MR MACLAREN HAD SAID: "IT ALWAYS STRIKES ME AS PARADOXICAL THAT ANY

ON DISCUSSION

WHENEVER FREE TRADE, THAT ENVIRONMENT COME UP, IMMEDIATELY YOU GO TO TRADE SANCTIONS COMPATIBLE WITH A FREER TRADE ARRANGEMENT."

—

/MR MILLER

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