HONG KONG: Newly released government figures showed Hong Kong's exports rose for the first time in 13 months in November, helping the city's economic recovery after a yearlong recession.

Overseas shipments gained 1.3 percent from a year earlier to HK$234.1 billion ($30.2 billion), after dropping 13.1 percent in October. The median forecast of six economists in a Bloomberg News survey was for a 1.6 percent gain.

The low bases for comparison helped the latest figures, as Hong Kong's shipments abroad fell by the most in more than three years in November last year.

A government spokesman said that on a seasonally adjusted basis, merchandise exports also expanded further in recent months, and Asian markets continued to fare better than the US and EU markets.

"The on-going recovery of the global economy, albeit at a slow and gradual pace, should continue to be conducive to world trade and hence (favorable for) Hong Kong's trade performance in the coming months," the spokesman said.

"However, the global economic prospects, particularly those for the advanced economies, are still subject to considerable uncertainties. Hence, the external trading environment could remain challenging going forward," the spokesman added.

"Global demand is improving," said Kevin Lai, an economist at Daiwa Institute of Research, but, he added, "the outlook for Hong Kong's exports is not quite optimistic as the Chinese stimulus effect begins to wane."

Imports rose 6.5 percent in November, leaving a trade deficit of HK$20.7 billion. Exports to China rose 8.9 percent after falling 8.9 percent in October. Shipments to the US declined 12 percent after a 23.4 percent drop.

In terms of different types of products, increases were registered in the values of some commodity categories, in particular electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and electrical parts by HK$5.0 billion or 8.4 percent, and telecommunications, sound recording, reproducing apparatus and equipment by HK$4.7 billion or 12.2 percent. However, the value of total exports of office machines and automatic data processing machines decreased by HK$3.7 billion or 13.7 percent, according to data sources.

China Daily/Bloomberg News

(HK Edition 12/29/2009 page6)