Hongkong shipyards are at the mo-rent enjoying a boom such as they have not experienced for very many years. Im all, there are fourteen ocean-going vessels under construc-tien, and there are now only nine nations which can show higher figures.
The extent of the boom is revealed in statistics issued by the local office of Lloyds Register of Shipping, which disclose that during. the second quarter of this year vessels totalling 40,000 tons have either been completed or are under construction. Indeed, if we exclude the United Kingdom, tonnage now being built locally exceeds that for the whol? British Empire. Only Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Holland, Japan, Sweden and the United States can show higher figures than Hongkong.
Of the vessels being built, the biggest are two liners, each of about 10,000 tons, for the Blue Funnel Line, now under construction at the Taikoo Dockyard & Engineering Co.'s yards. These are sister ships of the vessels now being built in England for the same company, designed to be the most powerful freighters in the world. The keels of three large Indo-China Steam Navigation Company steamships are now being laid at the Hongkong & Whampoa Dock Co.'s yards at Kowloon. They will be named, Liwo, Taisang and Wingsang. The two.last-named will be modern coastal liners of 3,500. tons gross, while the Liwo will be a river vessel] of 889 tons.
Other vessels are being built to satisfy orders in Australia, India and the Philippines.
Meanwhile, business generally shows a marked improvement, the latest statistics showing that the total visible trade of the Colony increased in terms of local currency by ever 30 per cent. in May, compared with the same month last year, and by over 27 per cent. in sterling, Compared with the corresponding peri ied of last year, in the first five months of the year imports increased by over 34 per cent. in terms of local currency and by over 29 per cent, in sterling: while exports improved by over 34 per cent. in local currency and over 29 per cent. in sterling.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.