XN000022-1996-10-17 — Page 5

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A slight improvement was observed on the general perception of the present situation, with 73 per cent of interviewees responding positively, compared with 72 per cent in the last survey.

Of the three most often mentioned problems facing Hong Kong, housing issues topped the list again at 41 per cent, up from 34 per cent. It was followed by labour- related problems and the future of Hong Kong, which were mentioned by 32 per cent and 25 per cent of the respondents respectively.

Among those who mentioned housing issue, 35 per cent said they were concerned about the high price of private housing, down from 42 per cent in the last survey.

Of those who mentioned labour-related problems, 80 per cent talked about "unemployment". This was nine percentage points lower than the comparable figure recorded in July.

The survey was the 66th in the series started in 1983 to monitor public opinion trends on perceived problems in the territory, the Government's overall performance and the community's views of the general situation.

Through a random sampling of residential telephone numbers, 1,519 persons aged between 15 and 64 were successfully interviewed over the telephone, representing a completion rate of 60 per cent.

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Payroll statistics for 2nd quarter 1996

Average labour earnings in all major sectors of the economy, as measured by payroll per person engaged, recorded an increase of 11.2% in nominal terms in the second quarter of 1996 over a year earlier, according to statistics released today (Thursday) by the Census and Statistics Department.

terms.

After discounting changes in consumer prices, the increase was 4.4% in real

Analysed by industry sector, average payroll per person engaged in the manufacturing sector increased by 10.5% in nominal terms, or 3.7% in real terms, in the second quarter of 1996 compared with a year ago. The large increase in earnings in this sector was due in part to a rise in working hours over a year earlier.