TNAG-0170-FCO40-206-British-Trade-Commissioner-1969 — Page 56

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CONFIDENTIAL

Anglo Hong Kong Trade

1) Exports from Hong Kong to the United Kingdom

Britain is Hong Kong's second customer in value of purchases, eœing after America, The Colony provides 1.5% of our total imports. The trend of sales to Britain has been strongly upward in the last five years, but not so strong as to match the increase to the U.S.A.

1967 1968

% Increas 68764

68/67

Hong Kong Total Exports

Exports to USA

4.427 6,700 8,428

+90.4% +25.8%

1,227 2,503 3.486

+184.1% +39.2%

Exports to

968 1,146 1,343

+38.7% +17.15

(Source: H.K. Statistics)

The majority of the Colony's exports to Britain are textiles either in the shape of garments or else as

fabric. Footwear (especially rubber shoes) and transistor radios from Hong Kong sell well in Britain, as do wigs. Binocular and camera sales are rising.

2)

Imports from the United Kingdom into Hong Kong

Britain is Hong Kong's fourth largest supplier of imports coming after Japan, China and the U.S.A, Over the last five years our exports have risen by nearly 30%, until we now sell well over £70 million of goods to Hong Kong each year, a total which makes the Colony a more important customer than such countries as Austria, India, or than Poland, East Germany and Hungary put together. proportion of Hong Kong's total imports has shown a tendancy to fall in recent years, as the rate of increase in our sales has not matched the extremely rapid rise in Hong Kong overall purchases.

Our

196

遥遥遥

1967

% Increas

68767

Hong Long

Total Import s

8.550 10,449 12.472

+45.9% +19.4%

Imports from UK

838

983

1,083

+29.2%

.2% +10.2%

Imports from Japan Imports from China 1,970

1,549

1,994

2,716

+75.1% +36.2

2,281

2,429

+23. + 6.5%

Imports from USA

983

1,410 1,727

+75.7% +22.4%

Imperts from Gernary 246

316

402 +62.9% +27.25

(Source: H.L. Statistics)

The main strength of our exports to Hong Kong lies in ospital and semi-capital goods. In an average year the

CONFIDENTIAL