The total import value of Chinese herbal medicines rose 11.8% last year to $1.69 billion, with a significant portion consumed locally, a Census & Statistics Department study has found.

The May 2008 issue of the Monthly Digest of Statistics published today said the retained import value of Chinese herbal medicines was $990 million last year, up 23.2% on 2006. The re-export value dropped 1.1% to $700 million.

On training, 362 and 322 candidates passed Parts I and II of the Chinese Medicine Practitioners Licensing Examination last year. The pass rates were 50.4% and 72.5%. Up to last October 4,700 Chinese medicine practitioners had renewed their practising certificates.

In another article, the digest says research and development personnel in Hong Kong rose 4% in 2006 to 23,000 and expenditure surged 9% to $11.9 billion. Total research and development spending as a ratio to gross domestic product grew to 0.81% in 2006 from 0.59% in 2002.

The share of business research and development expenditure rose to 53% in 2006 from 33% in 2002. This showed the business sector had overtaken the higher education sector as the largest research and development performing sector since 2005.