Economy grows 6.4% in 2021 |
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Hong Kong’s economy had recovered further in the fourth quarter of 2021 because of the robust export performance and improved private consumption. During this period, Hong Kong’s economy grew 4.8% year-on-year and rose 6.4% for 2021 as a whole, reversing the declines in the previous two years. According to the estimates, private consumption expenditure increased 6% in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2021 over a year earlier and rose 5.7% for the whole year. Over the same period, total goods exports and imports surged 13.3% and 9.7% from a year earlier. For 2021, total goods exports and imports grew 19% and 17.5%, and the total retail sales value rose 8.1%. Separately, the Government recorded a US$6.4 billion surplus for the nine months ending Dec 31, with the fiscal reserves standing at US$125.3 billion. Total assets of the Exchange Fund at end-December 2021 amounted to US$586.8 billion.
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Green and sustainable finance center |
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Hong Kong’s future as an international financial center will be built on green finance as a driving force to facilitate the transformation towards sustainable economic development, with a focus on taxonomies, climate-related disclosures, sustainability reporting and carbon market opportunities said Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Christopher Hui at a financial forum (Jan 26). At the same time, Hong Kong will continue to be an offshore RMB business hub. One of the initiative down the line is to introduce new RMB counters for shares tradable under the Southbound Stock Connect.
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Hong Kong ranks as world’s number 6 data center |
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Hong Kong moves up to 6th place globally and second in Asia-Pacific in the 2022 Data Center Global Market Comparison report. Hong Kong retains its crown as the globally lowest taxed data center jurisdiction. The annual report, released by Cushman & Wakefield, noted the city's “robust development pipeline, excellent networks and availability of all major cloud services”. Hong Kong, with its long history of pro-business policies, offers a robust data center sector. The ranking was based on an evaluation of 1,333 data centers in 55 markets across the globe.
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Hong Kong as new innovation hub |
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Rewatch the “Hong Kong: A World of Opportunities in Innovation & Technology” webinar (Jan 26), jointly organized by the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office, New York (HKETONY) and InvestHK, to learn more about how Hong Kong becomes Asia’s new innovation hub. Delivering opening remarks, HKETONY Director Candy Nip highlighted the city’s continuous investments to promote I&T growth, as well as the support under the National 14th Five-Year Plan to propel the city into an international I&T hub, with biotechnology, artificial intelligence, smart city and financial technologies as the four key areas of focus. Also speaking at the webinar, InvestHK’s global heads of I&T, Wendy Chow and Andy Wong, along with Oracle Netsuite’s Nick Cheng spoke on the latest industry opportunities in Hong Kong.
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Ample opportunities in legal sector |
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There are ample opportunities for international lawyers to make good use of Hong Kong as a springboard to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), for the provision of deal-making and dispute resolution services, said Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng at the Law Society of Hong Kong's Leadership Insights Session (Jan 26). With the successful conclusion of the inaugural GBA Legal Professional Examination, international lawyers can collaborate with Hong Kong local lawyers to provide enterprises within the GBA a one-stop shop for cross-border and cross-jurisdictional legal services in a holistic regional approach. Under a pilot measure, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and foreign enterprises are also allowed to register in Qianhai to adopt non-Mainland law, when entering into civil and commercial contracts.
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COVID-19 control measures extended |
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Starting from Feb 5, compulsory hotel quarantine for people arriving in Hong Kong will be reduced from the current 21 days to 14 days, followed by seven days of self-monitoring. The move is based on scientific evidence that the Omicron variant has a relatively shorter incubation period. Meanwhile, the suspension of incoming passenger flights from the United States and seven other countries remains in effect until Feb 18.
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Hong Kong teen clinches second junior grand slam title |
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Hong Kong tennis player Coleman Wong (left) made history again by winning the Australian Open junior boys’ doubles final (Jan 28). Wong and his partner Bruno Kuzuhara defeated Alex Michelsen of the US and Adolfo Daniel Vallejo of Paraguay 6-4, 7-6 to capture the championship title in Melbourne . Last year, Wong became the first Hongkonger to claim a boys’ doubles grand slam title at the US Open. Congratulations Coleman and Bruno!
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Hong Kong to host ISPA mid-year congress |
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Hong Kong will host the mid-year congress of the International Society for the Performing Arts (ISPA) May 23 – 28, 2022. The Hong Kong 2022 ISPA Congress, under the theme of “To Connect Beyond”, will delve into the intricacy and relationship between artists and the community, cultural places and performance sites, as well as the past and future. To be held in hybrid format, the congress will feature keynote sessions, panel discussions, exchange sessions, performance showcases and visits to the latest performing art venues.
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Special Chinese New Year screening in Chicago |
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To celebrate the Chinese New Year, the HKETONY will support the Asian Pop-Up Cinema to hold two free screenings in Chicago on Feb 12, featuring Hong Kong comedy “All U Need Is Love”. Announcing the special screenings, HKETONY Director Candy Nip said that watching light-hearted family-friendly movies is amongst the traditions of this festive occasion. “I hope that this heart-warming comedy will bring laughter amidst the stressful times of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as the world ushers in the Year of the Tiger.” RSVP to join the free screenings.
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Hong Kong and its Basic Law |
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The Basic Law (BL) is the constitutional document of the HKSAR. Put into effect on July 1, 1997, it enshrines within a legal document the important concept of “One Country, Two Systems”.
Q: Have Hong Kong's capitalist system and way of life been preserved?
A: The Basic Law provides that the capitalist system and way of life shall remain unchanged. Hong Kong maintains a free and open market economy with a free flow of capital, goods, intangible assets, and a freely convertible currency. People's lifestyle remains the same as before. (BL Articles 5; 112; 115)
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