TNAG-2977-FCO40-1469-Economic-policy-in-Hong-Kong-1982 — Page 133

FCO40 Hong Kong Department Records 聯邦事務部香港部檔案 All

3.18

It

The loco London gold price remained weak for most of

the first half. Apart from some occasional strength arising

from the Falkland Islands crisis and the Middle East tension,

the market was persistently under pressure from the strength

of the US dollar, high US interest rates and rumours of heavy

sales by some major gold suppliers. As a result, the gold

price declined from US$400 per fine ounce at the end of

December 1981

1981 to US$309 in mid-March and, after a recovery to US$368 on 19th April, fell again to US$296 in late June.

then regained some ground to finish at US$314 at the end of

June, 22% below its end-of-December level. Meanwhile, on the

Chinese Gold and Silver Exchange, the gold price, after moving

between HK$2,540 and HK$2,740 per tael in the first two months

of the year, declined to HK$2,147 in the middle of March. A

brief recovery of the price to HK$2,537 in mid-April was

followed by a sharp decline to HK$2,120 in the latter part of

June, before closing the month at HK$2,213, 18.5% below

level at the end of December 1981.

the

3.19

Trading in gold futures on the commodity market was quiet in the first half of 1982 with a total turnover of 6 357

lots each of 100 troy ounces. Trading in soyabean and sugar

futures remained active. Turnover totalled 346 083 lots of

soyabeans each of 30 000 kilograms and 159 014 lots of sugar each of 50 long tons. There was no trading in cotton futures.

27

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