Hong Kong's Economic Challenges

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HONG KONG'S ECONOMIC CHALLENGES 1. Hong Kong has enjoyed great success in recent decades. It has experienced strong and sustained real GDP growth and has amongst the highest GDP per capita in the world. It's strong economic performance has been due in part to its strategic geographical location on the doorstep of China and easy access to other South East Asian countries. The advent of telecommunication technology and other forms of communication has, however, lessened the importance of Hong Kong's geographical advantage. At the same time Hong Kong's advantages in other areas have been narrowing as Hong Kong's competitors continue to transform their economies and adopt laws and policies which encourage foreign trade and investment. Hong Kong therefore faces an enormous challenge in maintaining its competitive edge. 2. In the past two decades, Hong Kong has undergone an economic structural change from a manufacturing-based economy to a service economy. The services sector has rapidly expanded and replaced the manufacturing sector as the major economic activity in Hong Kong, and the export of services has become an important impetus for economic growth. The Hong Kong Government expects the services sector to be the engine of future economic growth and has said that it will ensure that the markets for services are as open and competitive as possible. 3. Not all markets in service sectors are automatically highly competitive under a laissez-faire regime. Unlike the manufacturing sector, in which most goods are traded in the international market and therefore subject to international competition, the services sector includes some services which can only be provided domestically. Such services, for example, legal and accounting services, medical and dental services, public utilities, local radio and television broadcasting, retail banking services and other services
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