§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the unit value of exports of motor cars from the principal supplying countries to the United Kingdom as a percentage of 1975, the corresponding figure for exports generally, and the corresponding figure for United Kingdom imports from each of these countries, for each year since 1976 and 1981 to date.
§ Mr. SproatThe readily available information is as follows:
Unit Values* of Passenger Motor Cars† Belgium/Luxembourg France FR of Germany Italy Spain Japan 1. Specified Countries Exports to United Kingdom‡ 1975 100 100 100 100 100 100 1976 130 123 122 129 127 110 1977 139 130 122 168 180 116 1978 145 171 130 202 210 126 1979 167 194 135 261 259 138 1980 173 221 147 300 na 145 1981║ 160 2. Specified Countries Exports to World‡ 1975 100 100 100 100 100 100 1976 115 123 108 137 136 106 1977 122 137 119 162 177 110 1978 129 156 126 190 215 111 1979 144 173 134 222 222 120 1980 147 181 147 245 na 130 1981║ 139 3. United Kingdom Imports from Specified Countries § 1975 100 100 100 100 100 100 1976 147 143 148 130 109 137 1977 169 163 160 154 229 166 1978 169 201 183 175 254 200 1979 201 221 196 205 288 200 1980 208 237 202 221 283 183 Notes:
* Average value per car.
† Generally SITC(Rev 2) group 781, although the exact coverage in the different sources may vary slightly.
‡ Indices based on unit values expressed in the national currency of the specified country.
§ Indices based on unit values expressed in £ sterling.
║ January to September.
Sources: Tables 1 and 2:
Belgium/Luxembourg, France, FR of Germany and Italy—Eurostat "Analytical tables of foreign trade—NIMEXE".
Spain—"Estadistica Del Comercio Exterior De Espana".
Japan—"Japan Exports and Imports—Commodity by Country".
Table 3:
Overseas Trade Statistics of the United Kingdom.
General Note: Difference in the figures of imports into the United Kingdom and exports recorded by foreign countries will include
Average Contents Description 1 to 25 26 to 50 51 to 100 101 to 250 251 to 500 501 to 1,000 Matches of natural wood packed in sliding boxes 0.01FF 0.016FF 0.035FF 0.061FF 0.125FF 0.30FF For other packings and other types of matches 0.013FF 0.020FF 0.045FF 0.080FF 0.162FF 0.39FF The manufacturing taxes above are reduced by 0.005FF per packet unit for books containing a maximum of 50 matches of wood or paper board.
468Wdifferences in the method of compilation, in valuation and in timing, as well as reflecting movements in relative exchange rates. Differences between all the various series will arise as a result of differences in the composition of trade.
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he will publish in the Official Report a table showing the extent to which the price of imported cars has risen each year since 1976 and in 1981 to date compared with the movements in the real exchange rates with the currencies of Germany, Japan, France and Italy.
§ Mr. Peter ReesI refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 17 December— [Vol. 15, c.173–4] —which gives average declared values for all cars imported i n the years 1976–80; a comparable figure for the months of January, February, September and October 1981 was £2,684. Information for the interim months cannot be incorporated at present owing to the effects of the Civil Service industrial dispute.
Regarding movements in the real exchange rate, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given him on 1 I December by my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary [Vol. 14, c. 511–12].
§ Mr. Nicholas Wintertonasked the Secretary of State for Trade what was the total number and value of imports of cars, trucks, vans and lorries into the United Kingdom from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in each year since 1977; and how these figures compare with comparable statistics for each country of the European Economic Community.
§ Mr. Sproat[pursuant to his reply, 17 December 1981,c. 173]: The figure for United Kingdom (Cars (Numbers—1980)) should read 11,854.