XN000022-1996-08-02 — Page 6

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"The paper can be obtained from our office on 41st floor, Revenue Tower, 5 Gloucester Road, Hong Kong, or from the Government Home Page on the Internet (http://www.info.gov.hk/)," the spokesman added.

Submissions should be sent to the Branch by fax 2511 1458 or by e-mail, [email protected].

End

Registration of new rice stockholders invited

The Trade Department is inviting applications for the registration of new rice stockholders.

Announcing this today (Friday), the Director-General of Trade, Mr Alan Lai, said that the Department intended to register no less than four additional rice stockholders and allocate each with about eight to ten units.

Rice in Hong Kong is subject to control under a Rice Control Scheme. Under the Scheme, the quantity of rice to be imported into Hong Kong per quarter for local consumption is subject to a quota which is divided into 1,000 units, each representing 90 tonnes of rice. Out of the 1000 units, 960 units have already been allocated to 45 rice stockholders with the remaining 40 units are available for allocation.

"As part of Government's plan to open up the rice trade in Hong Kong, more new rice stockholders, initially no less than four, will be introduced. This is to enhance competition in the rice trade, and we believe that addition of newcomers should be beneficial to consumers in the long run," Mr Lai said.

Those who wish to apply for registration may obtain the application form from the Trade Department's Reserved Commodities Section, Room 401, 4th floor, Trade Department Tower, Mong Kok, Kowloon.

No application will be considered unless each of the application criteria, as briefly listed below, is satisfied:

the applicant is registered with the Business Registration Office;

it must have capital of not less than HK$4 million;