ILITARY contributions by Hongkong last year reached an all-time record of $5,586,415. Government pensions, $2,559,809, and expenditure on the Police Department, $3,109,696, were also records.
Despite increased expenditure under these headings, the Colony's revenue during 1937 proved so buoyant that an estimated deficit of $3,498,910 became a surplus of $1,085,146, bringing the assets of the Colony, $14,002,278, to the highest level in many years.
Financial returns for the Colony of Hongkong for the year 1937, issued this morning, disclose increased revenue over 1936, under every heading except Port and Harbour Dues. The estimated revenue of $28,760,250 was exceeded in every head. Actual revenue was $33,196,368, Estimated expenditure of $32,259,160 was higher by $147,938 than actual expenditure, states the "Hongkong Telegraph."
Surplus for the year was maintained despite a falling off of revenue in ber, when the total of $2,921,- 219 was less by $140,151 than in the corresponding period last year.
There was an appreciable falling off of revenue during the last month of the year in Duties and Misceltaneous Receipts.
For the yead 1937 revenue from Duties totalled $7,625,411, compared with $6,928,672 in 1996. Estimated revenue of $6,415,000 was therefore exceeded by $696,739.
Port and Harbour Dues, which were estimated to yield $635,000, yielded $625,684, compared with $638,282 in 1936. Licences and Internal Revenue not otherwise specified yielded $14,192,267, an increase of $355,085 over last year, and over a million dollars in excess of estimated revenue.
Post Office receipts reached a record of $3254396, which represents an increase of no less than $1,195,510. It is interesting to note that this increase in post office revenue exceeds the entire Colony surplus.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.