Post_Office_1973-1974 — Page 7

INTRODUCTION

THE Post Office Department operates postal services within Hong Kong and participates in worldwide exchanges of mail by land, sea and air. It is also responsible for postal remittance services. The Post- master General is the nominated Telecommunications Authority for Hong Kong under the Telecommunications Ordinance. The Post Office is concerned with the licensing and control of all telecommunications services and provides telecommunications and electronic facilities for Government Departments. The year under review saw the commence- ment of the Department's 133rd year of operation.

2. There was very little change in the revenue and expenditure figures for the year ended 31st March, 1974, by comparison with the previous year. Revenue from Postal and Remittance Services amounted to $173,593,100, a decrease of 0.1%, while expenditure amounted to $100,800,000, representing a 0.2% increase.

3. During the year under review an estimated 261.4 million postal articles were handled-an increase of 9.3 million, or 3.7% over the number handled the previous year. Within the general increase in business, however, there were both upward and downward movements in the various categories of mail handled.

4. Two new major international services were introduced during the year. The first, known as 'Speedpost', a contractural door-to-door package collection and delivery service, was introduced between Hong Kong and the United Kingdom in September 1973. Designed to provide a particularly fast and reliable service for commercial and industrial organizations, 'Speedpost' was the first facility of its kind to be in- troduced in the Far East: this special service in fact exists in only half-a-dozen postal administrations throughout the world at present. The service was extended to the United States of America in January 1974, and it is hoped to extend it to other countries as demand and opportunity offer.

5. The second new international facility made available during the year was the 'Express' mail service, which commenced on a reciprocal basis with twenty countries in March 1974. Unlike 'Speedpost', the

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