XN000022-1995-04-12 — Page 15

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Comparing the first two months of 1995 with the same period in 1994, the value of imports from all main suppliers showed increases of various magnitudes: France (+136%), Singapore (+55%), South Korea (+40%), Malaysia (+37%), Japan (+29%), the United States (+29%), Taiwan (+28%), Germany (+24%), China (+22%) and the United Kingdom (+21%).

The value of imports in the first two months of 1995, at $204,6 billion, increased markedly, by 28% over the same period in 1994.

Table 6 shows changes in the value of imports of 10 principal commodity divisions.

Comparing the first two months of 1995 with the same period in 1994, increases were recorded in the value of imports of most principal commodity divisions.

More notable increases were registered for electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and electrical parts thereof (by $8.2 billion or 48%); telecommunications and sound recording and reproducing apparatus and equipment (by $6.4 billion or 42%); textiles (by $4.3 billion or 31%); office machines and automatic data processing machines (by $2.9 billion or 50%);. miscellaneous manufactured articles consisting mainly of baby carriages, toys, games and sporting goods (by $2.2 billion or 21%); and photographic apparatus, equipment and supplies, optical goods, watches and clocks (by $2.0 billion or 27%).

Over the same period, a decrease in the value of imports was recorded for clothing (by $500 million or 3.8%).

All the trade statistics described here are measured at current prices and no account has been taken of changes in prices between the periods of comparison.

A separate analysis of the volume and price movements of external trade for February 1995 will be released in early May 1995.

Detailed trade statistics analysed by commodity and by country/ territory are published in trade statistics reports.