HK's External Trade Up in JulyHong Kong's total exports and imports showed further notable increases in July, according to the external merchandise trade figures released Thursday by the Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong.The value of total exports of goods increased by 9.6 percent in July over a year earlier to 134.4 billion HK dollars (17.2 billion U.S. dollars). The value of re-exports rose markedly by 11.1 percent to 118.2 billion HK dollars (15.1 billion U.S. dollars), while that of domestic exports increased slightly by 0.1 percent to 16.3 billion HK dollars (2.1 billion U.S. dollars). The value of imports of goods increased by 11.6 percent in July over a year earlier to 142.5 billion HK dollars (18.3 billion U.S. dollars). A visible trade deficit of 8.1 billion HK dollars (1.04 billion U.S. dollars), equivalent to 5.7 percent of the value of imports of goods, was recorded in July. This was larger than the deficit of 5.1 billion HK dollars (654 million U.S. dollars), equivalent to 4.0 percent of the value of imports of goods, recorded in July 1999. For the first seven months this year as a whole, the value of total exports of goods increased considerably, by 17.0 percent over a year earlier. Over the same period, the value of imports of goods also rose significantly, by 19.8 percent. Taken together, a visible trade deficit of 56.6 billion HK dollars (7.25 billion U.S. dollars), equivalent to 6.2 percent of the value of imports of goods, was recorded. A government secretariat spokesman said that the year-on-year increase in the value of total exports of goods in July, while still robust, moderated somewhat from the double-digit surge recorded in the past eight months. The spokesman also observed a continued rise in imports retained for local use, reflecting a sustained pick-up in domestic demand upon the economic revival. |
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