Hong Kong Economy Profile 2008

Economy - overview

Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international trade. In 2006, the total value of goods and services trade, including the sizable share of reexports, was equivalent to 400% of GDP. The territory has become increasingly integrated with mainland China over the past few years through trade, tourism, and financial links. The mainland has long been Hong Kong's largest trading partner, accounting for 46% of Hong Kong's total trade by value in 2006. As a result of China's easing of travel restrictions, the number of mainland tourists to the territory has surged from 4.5 million in 2001 to 13.6 million in 2006, when they outnumbered visitors from all other countries combined. Hong Kong has also established itself as the premier stock market for Chinese firms seeking to list abroad. Bolstered by several successful initial public offerings in early 2007, by September 2007 mainland companies accounted for one-third of the firms listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and more than half of the Exchange's market capitalization. During the past decade, as Hong Kong's manufacturing industry moved to the mainland, its service industry has grown rapidly and now accounts for 91% of the territory's GDP. Hong Kong's natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from 1989 to 2007, despite the economy suffering two recessions during the Asian financial crisis in 1997-98 and the global downturn in 2001-02. Hong Kong continues to link its currency closely to the US dollar, maintaining an arrangement established in 1983.

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$293.4 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$203 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

5.8% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$42,000 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 8.1%
services: 91.8% (2007 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

2% (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

22% of GDP (2007 est.)

Labor force

3.64 million (2007 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

manufacturing 6.5%, construction 2.1%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.3%, financing, insurance, and real estate 20.7%, transport and communications 7.8%, community and social services 19.5%
note: above data exclude public sector (2007 est.)

Unemployment rate

4.2% (2007 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

53.3 (2007)

Budget

revenues: $36.9 billion
expenditures: $29.4 billion (FY07-08 est.)

Public debt

8.9% of GDP (2007 est.)

Industries

textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks

Industrial production growth rate

-0.9% (2007 est.)

Electricity - production

38.6 billion kWh (2006)

Electricity - consumption

40.3 billion kWh (2006)

Electricity - exports

4.5 billion kWh (2006)

Electricity - imports

10.9 billion kWh (2006)

Oil - production

0 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - consumption

292,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - imports

314,700 bbl/day (2006)

Oil - exports

22,420 bbl/day (2006)

Oil - proved reserves

0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas - production

0 cu m (2006 est.)

Natural gas - consumption

2.944 billion cu m (2006 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2006 est.)

Natural gas - imports

2.944 billion cu m (2006)

Natural gas - proved reserves

0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current Account Balance

$19.87 billion (2007 est.)

Agriculture - products

fresh vegetables; poultry, pork; fish

Exports

$353.3 billion f.o.b., including reexports (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities

electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material

Exports - partners

China 47%, US 15.1%, Japan 4.9% (2006)

Imports

$371.3 billion (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities

raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods, foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported)

Imports - partners

China 45.9%, Japan 10.3%, Taiwan 7.5%, Singapore 6.3%, US 4.8%, South Korea 4.6% (2006)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$152.7 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external

$588 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home

$506.4 billion (2006)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad

$441.4 billion (2006)

Market value of publicly traded shares

$2.97 trillion (2007 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$6.95 million (2004)

Currency (code)

Hong Kong dollar (HKD)

Exchange rates

Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.802 (2007), 7.7678 (2006), 7.7773 (2005), 7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March