GRS 550
UNCLASSIFIED
FM HONG KONG
400/1
12 FEB 1907
TO DESKBY 12093OZ FCO.
TELNO 508
A4001.
107
TOP COPY
Q DIST ?
OF 120645Z FEBRUARY 187
101
FOR SIR DAVID WILSON FROM CHIEF SECRETARY : YOUR TELNO 362
THE POPULATION OF HK INCREASED FROM 4.5 MILLION IN 1977 TO
5.5 MILLION IN 1986. THE AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH RATE IS 2.3 PER
CENT. THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT IN POPULATION TO THE NEW TOWNS WHICH
IN 1977 HAD A TOTAL POPULATION OF 0.5 MILLION (11 PER CENT).
THIS INCREASED TO 1.5 MILLION IN 1986 (27.3 PER CENT).
2=
THE KEY INDICATORS OF ECONOMIC GROWTH BETWEEN 1977 AND 1986
ARE
1977
1986
AVERAGE ANNUAL GROWTH
RATE (PER CENT)
GDP (DOLLARS MN AT
CURRENT PRICES)
68,905 291,897
17.4
GDP PER CAPITA (DOLLARS
MN AT CURRENT PRICES)
15,279
52,759
14.8
DOMESTIC EXPORTS
35,004
153,983
17.9
(DOLLARS MN)
RE-EXPORTS (DOLLARS MN)
9,829 122,546
32.4
CONTAINER THROUGHPUT
1.26
2.77
9.1
(MILLION TEUS)
POSITION OF OUR
CONTAINER PORT IN
THE WORLD LEAGUE
4TH
2ND+
(AFTER NEW
(AFTER ROTTERDAM)
YORK,
ROTTERDAM
AND KOBE
(+ FIGURE ON NEW YORK'S THROUGHPUT FOR 1986 IS NOT YET AVAILABLE. HOWEVER, BASED ON THE GROWTH TREND IN PREVIOUS YEARS, HK SHOULD HAVE OVERTAKEN NY IN 1986.)
3. AGAINST THE BACKGROUND OF RAPID ECONOMIC GROWTH, IT IS RELEVANT TO POINT OUT THAT HK ENJOYED VIRTUALLY FULL EMPLOYMENT
THROUGHOUT THIS PERIOD DESPITE THE POPULATION GROWTH. THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE WAS CONSTANTLY AROUND 3 PER CENT EXCEPT IN MARCH 1983 WHEN THE PEAK OF 5.1 PER CENT WAS RECORDED. ECONOMIC GROWTH
AND FULL EMPLOYMENT WERE ACHIEVED TOGETHER WITH PRICE STABILITY.
INFLATION RATES WERE KEPT IN LINE WITH THE CYCLICAL WORLD TREND. IN 1986, THE INFLATION RATE REACHED A LOW LEVEL OF 2.9 PER CENT.
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