TNAG-2977-FCO40-1469-Economic-policy-in-Hong-Kong-1982 — Page 204

quarter, following a slight decline

a slight decline during the fourth quarter of 1981(1)

4.4

The slowing down in the growth rate of the supply of labour was accompanied by a slowing down in the growth rate of

demand, at least in the manufacturing sector, as indicated by for example the low growth

growth rate of domestic exports in

in the

first quarter. Some indirect evidence of this is given by the

fact that the number of retrenched workers reported to the

Labour Department in the first quarter of 1982 showed a large

increase when compared with the corresponding quarter of

1981

However, the number of persons on the register of

the Local Employment Service (excluding those seeking Model I

pay scale jobs and those on the Special Register) at the end of March was only 3% higher than at the end of March 1981, whereas the number of reported vacancies was 9% higher. This suggests some mismatch between the supply of labour and the

demand for it.

(2).

Employment by sectors

4.5

Employment statistics for the last quarter of 1981 indicate that the tertiary services sector continued to have

/ the

(1) The labour force participation rate in the fourth quarter of 1981 was

65.0%, compared with 65.9% in the third quarter.

(2)

As a proportion of total employment in the manufacturing sector, the number of retrenched workers, at 5 643 in the first quarter, is very small.

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