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| The recent surge in Covid-19 cases has further dimmed the outlook for HK this year |
The Hong Kong government
says it expects to see a 6% to 8% decline in the economy for this year due to heavy
blows from the coronavirus pandemic.
Government economist Andrew Au said the forecast was revised
downward from the 4% to 7% projected in late April, when the economy showed
signs of stabilizing after the local epidemic situation had improved.
But the combined impact of the record decline in the first half
of the year, the difficult and uncertain economic environment in the second
half, and the government’s massive relief measures to cushion the impact of the
pandemic, made the downgrade inevitable.
“If the current wave of local infection can be contained
within a short time and barring any further sharp deterioration in the external
environment, economic performance for 2020 as a whole can hopefully fall within
the upper half of the range forecast,” Au said.
He said that if the economy contracts this year, as it did
in 2019, it would be the first back-to-back annual GDP drop (or two consecutive
yearly decline) for Hong Kong since record-keeping
began in 1961.
The grim figures highlighted Au’s mid-year economic report that
the government released today, Aug 14, along with the revised second-quarter
GDP figures.
The city’s gross domestic product slumped 9% in the second
quarter from the same period last year, after a record decline of 9.1% in the
first. Private consumption also fell by a record 14.2 percent.
But the rebound of China
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Exports of financial services also grew moderately, thanks
to active cross-border financial and fund-raising activities.
On the inflation outlook, the report said that with the
impact of the surge in pork prices since May last year having largely
dissipated, inflationary pressures will likely ease further for the rest of the
year.
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| Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong Dream Love |
Au said the government will continue to closely monitor the situation and roll out measures as necessary to maintain the vitality of the economy and pave the way for a speedy recovery once the threat of the pandemic recedes.
