Cypher
CONFIDENTIAL
INWARD TELEGRAM
TO THE COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
(The Secretary of State)
FROM HONG KONG (Sir D. Trench)
D. 16 June, 1967
#t R. 16
0505Z
1 6 JUN 1967
36
IMMEDIATE
CONFIDENTIAL
No. 852
(35)
COM
REGISTRATION
Addressed to The Hague, No. M.401. Repeated "Brussels (for Martin), No. M.402.
Board of Trade, No. M.403
(S. of S. please pass IMMEDIATE to all).
Following for Porter in Amsterdam.
Your telegram No. 2.
On the assumption that the draft reply has not (repeat not) yet been delivered, we suggest that the reply should be in the following terms:
"Total production of man-made fibre yarns, although
increasing from some 2.5 million lbs. in 1965 to 12.8 million lbs. in 1966, is insignificant compared with production of cotton yarn, totalling 289 and 292 million lbs. respectively. In addition, the increase in retained imports of man-made fibres of some 2.7 million lbs, should be compared with an increase of 40 million lbs. for raw cotton over same period. Hong Kong spinners were slow in moving into the field of man-made fibres and their production is still insignificant in absolute terms. The relative increase was large because the base was so small. There is a growing world demand for garments made from blended fabrics because of the increasing popularity of permanent press. The Hong Kong garment industry has had to respond to this development. Most of their fabrics have had to be obtained abroad, but local spinners and weavers have recently begun to compete with imports on a limited scale and only in fabrics of heavier construction woven from yarns of coarser counts.
#t
We would have no objection to this reply being given publicity.
2. The warning in your final paragraph has been noted.
(Passed as requested)
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