Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Monday, Mar 27, 2023

Hong Kong exports shrink by 8.9 per cent, performance expected to continue to slow

Hong Kong exports shrink by 8.9 per cent, performance expected to continue to slow

Performance attributed to a worsening external environment and continued disruptions to cross-boundary land transport, government spokesman says.

Hong Kong exports for July shrank by 8.9 per cent from a year earlier, while the government expected performance to be dragged further due to heightened geopolitical tensions and supply-chain disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Exports totalled HK$379.6 billion (US$48.4 billion) last month, down after a year-on-year increase of 6.4 per cent in June, according to figures released by the Census and Statistics Department on Thursday.

Imports also fell by 9.9 per cent from a year ago, to HK$407.2 billion, after an increase of 0.5 per cent the month before.

Hong Kong’s trade deficit stood at HK$27.6 billion for July, equivalent to 6.8 per cent of the value of imports of goods.

A government spokesman attributed the trade performance to a worsening external environment and continued disruptions to cross-boundary land transport.

Exports to mainland China, the United States and the European Union showed widened declines, while other major Asian markets saw mixed performance, the spokesman noted.

“Looking forward, Hong Kong’s export performance will continue to be dragged by the weakening global growth momentum,” he said.

“Aggressive monetary policy tightening in advanced economies to curb inflation will weigh on global demand. Heightened geopolitical tensions and pandemic-induced supply-chain disruptions also add to the headwinds.”

Hong Kong’s trade deficit stood at HK$27.6 billion for July, equivalent to 6.8 per cent of the value of imports of goods.


Gary Ng Cheuk-yan, a senior economist at Natixis Corporate and Investment Bank, predicted that the city’s export growth would shrink by 4 per cent due to poorer external demand as interest rates rose around the world, leading global consumers to save more money by purchasing fewer goods.

He also forecast Hong Kong’s gross domestic product (GDP) would have a zero per cent growth for the whole year, although local pandemic restrictions and border control measures played a larger role in determining the city’s GDP for the year when compared with exports and imports.

“If we do not see a quick relaxation in Hong Kong’s mobility measures, then I think it’s quite likely that Hong Kong’s economy will face more downside risks. It’s likely that Hong Kong will slip into a [full-year] recession in that case,” he said.

The government had earlier downgraded its full-year forecast for the city’s economic performance from 1 -2 per cent expansion to between 0.5 per cent growth and 0.5 per cent contraction on the back of a worsening external trade environment.

Hong Kong also slipped into recession earlier this year, as GDP shrank by a revised 1.3 per cent in the second quarter compared with the same period last year following a year-on-year decline of 3.9 per cent in the GDP in the first quarter.

A recession is defined as a contraction of GDP for two or more successive quarters. The last time the city fell into recession was in 2020 during the initial phases of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The downgrade reflected the havoc wreaked by the city’s fifth Covid-19 wave combined with the government’s “dynamic-zero” policy that kept the city largely closed off from the rest of the world.

It is the second time authorities have lowered their annual growth forecast in three months.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
Close
0:00
0:00
In a dramatic U-turn against His Government: Judicial Overhaul Legislation Must Be Halted, Says Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant
Powell: Silicon Valley Bank was an 'outlier'
Bordeaux town hall set on fire in France pro democracy protest
Police violence in Paris
Paris: Some of the police are stepping down and showing solidarity with the protesters.
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
NYPD is setting up barricades outside Manhattan Criminal Court ahead of Trump arrest.
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
Goldman Sachs cuts outlook for European bank debt over Credit Suisse crisis
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
The US government has charged Chinese businessman Guo Wengui with leading a $1 billion fraud scheme that cheated thousands of followers out of their money.
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
The BBC problem about China
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
"Will Fly Wherever International Law Allows": US Warns Russia After Drone Incident
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
Announcing GPT-4
TRUMP: "Standing before you today, I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent World War III."
China is calling out the US, UK, and Australia on their submarine pact, claiming they are going further down a dangerous road
A brief banking situation report
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
'No relation to the American SVB': India's SVC Bank acts to calm depositors amid brand name confusion.
Good news: The U.S. government is now guaranteeing all deposits, held by, Silicon Valley Bank, and the funds are available as of today
Silicon Valley Bank exec was Lehman Brothers CFO
In a potential last-ditch effort, HSBC is considering a rescue deal to save Silicon Valley Bank UK from insolvency
Saudi Arabia has announced a major breakthrough in diplomacy with Iran after two years of intense talks
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
City officials in Berlin announced on Thursday that all swimmers at public pools will soon be allowed to swim topless
Fitness scam
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
A primitive judge in Australia sparked outrage when he told a breastfeeding woman to leave his courtroom for being “a distraction"
Barcelona is feeling the heat as they face corruption charges over payments to former vice-president of Spain's referees' committee, Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
Silicon Valley Bank: Struggles Threaten Tech Startup Ecosystem"
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Old clip of Bill Gates saying Ukraine is a big, fat, corrupt sinkhole is going viral
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
2 universities in Hong Kong embrace use of ChatGPT, other AI tools
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
Missing Chinese banker was working to set up Singapore family office
Hong Kong ditches Covid mask mandate after 945 days
Xi Jinping and His Wife Meet with Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni and Queen Mother Norodom Monineath Sihanouk
How do stolen goods end up on Amazon, eBay and Facebook Marketplace?
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Is Gold the Ultimate Safe Haven Asset in Times of Uncertainty?
Spain officials quit over trains that were too wide for tunnels...
Hello. Here is our news digest from London.
×