HONG KONG MONETARY AUTHORITY Annual Report 1996
TABLE 1: MAJOR ECONOMIC INDICATORS
| 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V. | LABOUR | ||||||
| Labour force (annual change, %) | -0.4 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 2.4 | 1.9 | (g) | |
| Employment (annual change,%) | -0.6 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 3.0 | (g) | |
| Unemployment rate (annual average, %) | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 3.2 | 2.8 | ||
| Underemployment rate (annual average, %) | 2.1 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.7 | ||
| Employment ('000) | |||||||
- Manufacturing |
651 | 594 | 563 | 535 | 462 | (g) | |
- Financing, insurance, real estate and |
232 | 289 | 326 | 342 | 352 | (g) | |
- Wholesale, retail and import/export trades, restaurants and hotels |
748 | 796 | 828 | 825 | 901 | (g) | |
| VI. | MONEY SUPPLY (HK$ billion) | ||||||
| HK$ Money supply | |||||||
- M1 |
139.5 | 168.4 | 167.9 | 171.6 | 198.3 | ||
- M2 (h) |
727.0 | 922.4 | 1,094.7 | 1,260.4 | 1,503.3 | ||
- M3 (h) |
750.3 | 939.5 | 1,112.1 | 1,278.3 | 1,520.2 | ||
| Total Money supply | |||||||
- M1 |
155.6 | 187.6 | 185.3 | 190.5 | 217.5 | ||
- M2 |
1,518.8 | 1,761.0 | 1,988.5 | 2,266.1 | 2,506.9 | ||
- M3 |
1,574.3 | 1,819.7 | 2,067.0 | 2,347.2 | 2,586.3 | ||
| VII. | INTEREST RATES (end of period, %) | ||||||
| Three-month interbank Rate | 4.19 | 3.63 | 6.31 | 5.88 | 5.50 | ||
| Savings deposit | 1.50 | 1.50 | 3.75 | 4.00 | 3.75 | ||
| One-month time deposit | 2.25 | 2.25 | 5.00 | 5.18 | 4.69 | ||
| Banks' 'Best lending rate' | 6.50 | 6.50 | 8.5 | 8.75 | 8.50 | ||
| VIII. | EXCHANGE RATES (end of period) | ||||||
| HK$/US$ | 7.741 | 7.726 | 7.738 | 7.732 | 7.736 | ||
| Trade-weighted Effective Exchange Rate Index (Nov 1983=100) |
113.2 | 113.8 | 123.5 | 122.7 | 125.3 | ||
| IX. | FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES (US$ billion) (i) |
35.2 | 43.0 | 49.3 | 55.4 | 63.8 | |
| X. | STOCK MARKET (end of period figures) | ||||||
| Hang Seng Index | 5,512 | 11,888 | 8,191 | 10,073 | 13,451 | ||
| Average price/earning ratio | 13.1 | 21.6 | 10.7 | 11.4 | 16.7 | ||
| Market capitalisation (HK$ billion) | 1,332.2 | 2,975.4 | 2,085.2 | 2,348.3 | 3,476.0 |
| ** Prior to 1996 figures are 1989/9-based, thereafter figures are 1994/95-based. | (f) | Includes SAR Government Land Fund Balance but excludes Mandatory Provident Fund. | |
| (a) | Forecast as at March 1997. | (g) | End-September 1996 figures. |
| (b) | The estimates are preliminary. | (h) | Adjusted to include foreign currency swap deposits. |
| (c) | Adjusted to include an estimate of imports of gold for industrial and commercial use. | (i) | Excludes Net Forward Transactions but includes gold |
| (d) | Including equity investment and repayment of debt | ||
| (e) | Including net borrowing | ||