TNAG-0621-FCO40-769-Budget-of-Hong-Kong-1977 — Page 138

G.F. 323

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30.

Employment and vacancies in manufacturing

61.

Employment in manufacturing, the largest sector in Hong Kong

from the recession.

Production.

in terms of both employment and output, started in March 1975 to recover

It continued to increased rapidly through out the

rest of 1975 and in 1976. By June 1976, manufacturing employment was 5%

higher than the previous peak record in the 1973 Census of Industrial

Between June and September 1976, it increased by a further

4% and in December 1976, totalled 773,746, 14% higher than in December

1975 and 8% higher than the average for 1973. The latter percentage is

equivalent to an annual rate of increase of 3% which is roughly in the

same order of magnitude as the trend rate of growth for the labour

force as a hole between 1971 and 1976. In terms of employment, the

manufacturing sector has thus maintained its relative importance at over

In the last quarter of 1976, the growth in manufacturing employment

levelled off, an inevitable outcome given an annual rate of growth

averaging 20% in the first three quarters of 1976 compared to a trend

rate of growth in the labour force of only 3%. This could also be a

delayed effect of slower growth experienced in Hong Kong's major exort

markets in the second and third quarters of 1976.

40.

Table 30, Diagram 107

62.

Reflecting the buoyancy in the labour market, reported vacancies

in manufacturing establishments known to the Census and Statistics

Department also remained fairly high during 1976.

Quarterly reported

vacancies as a proportion of employment averaged between 4% and 6.

In September 1976, in particular, reported vacancies represented 5% of

manufacturing employment. Compared to an unemployment rate of 4.6%,

this suggests a tight market for labour for manufacturing.

Table 31

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