Hongkong shipyards are at the moment enjoying a boom such as they far have not experienced for very many years, In all, there are fourteen Scean-going "vessels under construc tion, and there are now only nine nations which can show higher Agures.
The extent of the boom is revealed statistics issued by the local once of Lloyds Register of Shipping, which Giselose 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 Jocally exceeds that for the whole British Empire. Only Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Holland, Japan, Sweden and the United States can show higher Agures than Hongkong Of the vessels being built, the biggest are two liners, each of about 10,000 tons, for the Blue Funnel Lino, 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 some company, designed to be the most Powerful freighters in the World," The keels of three large Indo-China "Steam Navigation Com- Pi pany steamships are now being laid fat 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 Austealia, India and the Philippines, 'Meanwhile, business generally shows a marked improvement, the latest statistics showing that' the {otal visible trade of the Colony me creased in terms of local currency by over 30 per cent. in May, compared 32%", with the same month last year, and by over 27 per cent. in terms of sterling.
Compared with the corresponding period of last 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.
"comfortable Retizing Allowance 'A. question which is not without is interest to Shanghai has cropped up in the correspondence columns of
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.