ENG-1971 — Page 57

INDUSTRY AND TRADE

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medicinal and pharmaceutical products, photographic and cine- matographic supplies, plastic materials and miscellaneous manu- factured articles.

The value of domestic exports reached $13,750 million, an increase of 11 per cent over the previous year. Products of the textile and garment manufacturing industries accounted for 50 per cent by value, and miscellaneous manufactured articles, mainly plastic toys and dolls, wigs and artificial flowers, made up a further 21 per cent. Other light industrial products such as transistor radios and elec- tronic components, footwear and manufactures of metal were also important exports.

The direction of Hong Kong's export trade is nowadays in- fluenced less by such factors as tariff preference in Britain and several other Commonwealth markets, than by economic conditions and commercial policies in principal markets. During the year 56 per cent of all domestic exports by value went to two markets-the United States and Britain. The United States, which remained the largest market, took 42 per cent by value and increased her purchases by $518 million or 10 per cent. The value of all goods sent to Britain was $1,946 million, 14 per cent of all domestic exports. The Federal Republic of Germany, Hong Kong's third largest market, purchased Hong Kong manufactures worth $1,128 million during the year. Other growing markets included Canada, Japan, Australia, Singa- pore, the Netherlands, Sweden and Taiwan, but in fact domestic exports go to nearly every country in the world.

The entrepôt trade has sustained its role in external trade. The value in 1971 totalled $3,414 million, an increase of 18 per cent over 1970. This was 20 per cent of the total combined value of exports of Hong Kong manufactures and re-exports of imported goods. During 1971 Japan remained the most important re-export market, followed by Singapore, Indonesia, the United States and Taiwan. The prin- cipal commodities in the re-export trade were diamonds, medicinal and pharmaceutical products, watches and clocks, textile fabrics and made-up articles, electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, crude animal and vegetable materials, and coffee, tea and spices.

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC RELATIONS

As the United Kingdom has acceded to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade on behalf of Hong Kong, the Colony's exports are given most-favoured-nation tariff treatment in the majority of its overseas markets and are accorded a degree of protection against