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The Standard on April 17 carried an AP report from Beijing which said a Chinese provincial paper had suggested that Britain had contributed little to HK's prosperity and that the colony would keep prospering after China took over. The Fujian Daily said the combined gains of the HK and British authorities amounted to more than $10 billion a year, and the main reason for HK's prosperity was the Chinese people. The assets of Chinese enterprises now exceeded those of the British.
In his 'Straight-Up' column on Sunday, Ted Thomas said a reporter whose reliability he would never challenge had just returned from Beijing with the startling news that there had been no negotiations so far on the future of HK after 1997.
In the 'Between these Columns' feature in the SCMP on Saturday, it was reported that an Exco member had been invited to become a member of Guangdong's provincial committee, but had declined on the grounds that he had prominently associated himself with the HK Government for many years and could not now accept a dual allegiance. The column also reported that 1997 watchers were busy compiling their short lists of the most eligible HK Chinese to be appointed Governor when the 'big day' came. Lord Cockfield was reported to have been disappointed with the local media because he had not been asked to comment on Mr. Roland Moyle's criticism of Mrs. Thatcher's stance in her talks in Beijing last year. He had planned to hit back at the Labour Party spokesman with something fresh and stimulating, but Mr. Moyle had been allowed to get away with his dig.
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BUSINESS ITEMS:
Foreign exchange earnings: In reply to a question in the House of Commons, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Mr. Douglas Hurd, said no accurate and complete figures were available to the British Government for China's gross foreign exchange earnings from HK. However, visible earnings were estimated to represent between 60 and 80 per cent of China's gross foreign exchange earnings from the territory.
China woos investment: The Chinese Government was planning to woo more foreign investment this year and to undertake massive joint ventures with foreign companies, Ming Pao reported. There was a 50 per cent drop in the value of foreign investment in the country last year.
Coal mine: A Xinhua despatch said consortia from 10 countries, including Japan, Italy, Britain and France, as well as from HK and Macau, had made contacts with China about the possibility of exploring coal resources in Kwei Zhou. A European consortium signed an initial agreement with China that they would provide a US$3 000m. loan for coal mining in Kwei Zhou.
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