Trade by Ocean Accounts for 38 Pct of HK's External TradeIn the first half of 2001, the value of Hong Kong's external merchandise trade by ocean accounted for 38.5 percent of Hong Kong's total value of external merchandise trade, according to statistics released by the Census and Statistics Department Monday.Another 29.1 percent was transported by land, 27.6 percent by air and 4.1 percent by river. The remaining 0.8 percent included shipment by postal parcels and accompanied goods of passengers traveling on various means of transport, the department said. Shipment by ocean represented a decrease of 3.6 percent in the first half of 2001, while shipment by land increased by 1.2 percent. Shipment by air rose by 2.6 percent. Concurrently, shipment by river fell by 6.1 percent in the first half of 2001, according to the department. Statistics also showed that the value of total exports of goods (comprising domestic exports and re-exports) by ocean to the United States decreased by 3.4 percent over a year earlier. However, the United States remained the largest destination for Hong Kong's total exports of goods by ocean, accounting for 35 percent of the total value in the first half of 2001. Decreases were also recorded in the value of total seaborne exports of goods to Germany, the United Kingdom and China's mainland, down 10.7 percent, 2.8 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively. Over the same period, the value of total seaborne exports of goods to Japan rose by 15.8 percent, while the value of imports of goods by ocean from Japan decreased by 1.3 percent. However, Japan remained the largest supplier of Hong Kong's imports of goods by ocean, accounting for 22.1 percent of the total value in the first half of 2001. |
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