ENG-1969 — Page 261

COMMUNICATIONS

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Agents' Association, the 27th Exhibition of Hong Kong Products and the Festival of Hong Kong Stamp Exhibition.

Three postage stamp issues were made during the year. As part of a series of stamps to commemmorate the Lunar New Year, two stamps in values of 10 cents and $1.30 were issued in February to commemorate 'the Year of the Cock'. In August there was an issue of a single 40 cents stamp to mark establishment of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. A $1 stamp was issued in September to coincide with the opening of the Satellite Earth Station on Stanley Peninsula. First Day Covers were sold on each occasion. There appears to be a growing interest in Hong Kong postage stamps.

In addition to the popular pictorial Christmas aerogrammes of last year, a new design was prepared by a Hong Kong artist and placed on sale on November 24.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

The Telecommunications Division of the Post Office licenses and inspects telecommunication installations operating under the Tele- communication Ordinance; investigates interference to telecom- munication services and monitors radio transmissions to ensure that they comply with the conditions of licence. The division also acts as adviser to government departments on telecommunication matters and co-ordinates their telephone service requirements.

Overseas communications are provided by Cable and Wireless Limited. Hong Kong is linked by an 80-channel submarine telephone cable westwards to Singapore and eastwards to Guam from where telegraph, telex and telephone circuits extend to all parts of the world.

In addition to the undersea cables a satellite earth station working via the Pacific Intelsat III satellite provides circuits to Japan, USA, Thailand and Australia. Other destinations will be added as and when necessary. A second Earth Station working to the Indian Ocean Satellite is planned to be operational by the end of 1970.

HF Radio circuits connect to 14 countries providing, in com- bination with undersea cable and satellite links, a total of 264 telegraph and 174 telephone circuits terminating in Hong Kong.