The volume of business and output in all sectors is expected to surge in the second quarter, according to the Census & Statistics Department's quarterly business tendency survey.

The survey gathered views on the short-term business outlook from the senior management of about 490 prominent establishments in various sectors here.

The manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail, import and export trade, restaurants and hotels, transport, banks, financing and insurance, as well as real estate, business services and telecoms sectors anticipate to have a brighter outlook in Q2.

On employment, respondents of the construction sector expect the number of jobs to dip, while those of the manufacturing sector generally anticipate the number of jobs will remain unchanged.

Other sectors expect their employment to increase.

The department events in the community occurring around the time of enumeration affect expectations surveys. This one was carried out from March 12 to April 6.

The survey results are published in the Report on Quarterly Business Tendency Survey, Q2, 2004.  This publication is now for sale for $15 in hardcopy and $11.30 for a softcopy (in PDF format), at the online Hong Kong Statistical Bookstore.

For enquiries, call the department's Business Expectation Statistics Section at 2805 6112.