§ 42. Mr. GrahamTo ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster by how much the percentage of Britain's domestic market met by imports of rubber and plastics changed between 1979 and June 1987; and what was the comparable figure in the average, best and worst performing Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development country.
§ Mr. AtkinsInformation on OECD countries' import penetration in rubber and plastics is in the table.
figure in the average, best and worst performing Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development country.
§ Mr. AtkinsData are not readily available on a quarterly basis. Information relating to OECD countries' trade in rubber and plastics is in the table.
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OECD Countries trade in rubber & plastics1 U.S. $ billion Exports Imports Export/Import Ratio Percentage Change in Exp/Imp Ratio Percentage 1979 1986 1979 1986 1979 1986 Australia 0.1 0.1 0.6 0.8 14 12 -10 Austria 0.6 1.0 0.8 1.2 75 86 14 Belgium/Luxembourg 3.0 3.9 1.7 2.4 175 163 -7 Canada 0.7 1.7 1.4 2.0 49 82 67 Denmark 0.2 0.3 0.8 1.1 28 32 16 Finland 0.2 0.3 0.5 0.7 36 241 14 France 4.5 5.7 3.5 4.7 129 121 -6 Germany 7.6 10.7 5.1 7.4 149 145 -3 Greece 0.0 0.1 0.3 0.4 13 14 15 Ireland 0.2 0.2 0.4 0.4 52 53 2 Italy 2.6 3.5 2.6 3.9 99 90 -9 Japan 3.1 5.2 1.2 1.8 259 284 9 Netherlands 3.5 4.8 1.7 2.5 202 190 -6 New Zealand 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.3 7 11 66 Norway 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.6 71 69 -3 Portugal 0.0 0.1 0.3 0.3 6 37 467 Spain 0.7 1.0 0.7 1.2 95 80 -16 Sweden 0.7 1.0 1.1 1.4 63 69 10 Switzerland 0.5 0.9 1.0 1.4 47 59 24 Turkey 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.3 2 35 n/m United States 4.6 5.3 3.4 5.6 136 95 -30 United Kingdom 2.6 3.2 2.7 4.1 96 79 -18 OECD less Iceland 35.6 49.5 30.6 44.7 116 111 -5 Note: 1 Standard International Trade Classification divisions 23 58 62. 2 Because the amount of trade varies widely among these countries, changes in the ratio of exports to imports provide a more reliable measure than changes in the balances.