My Take | Singapore can keep Hong Kong on its toes
- Competition will, in the long term, make us stronger, despite the challenges posed by Washington’s overt efforts to undermine the city
Hong Kong officials must be getting paranoid about Singapore. In less than a week, the financial secretary and the treasury chief have come out to cheer Hong Kong’s supposed advantages over the Lion City.
Writing in his blog, Paul Chan Mo-po said we were outperforming in key financial areas and that “there is no need to belittle ourselves or avoid our shortcomings”. Meanwhile, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu said the city stood out because “we have the support of our country to be a gateway to the world”.
Well, that’s the script they have been handed to reassure the public. Tellingly, neither official could hide their discomfort that the Hong Kong FinTech Week (October 31 – November 4) and Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit (November 1-2) coincide with Singapore’s FinTech Festival (November 2-4).
But longer term, is Hong Kong going to lose out after a recent exodus of talent and head offices to Singapore?
Mainland support is turning into a double-edged sword. Chan is more forthcoming and has identified “deglobalisation” as a major challenge. That’s the polite economic term for the political risks that Hong Kong faces in the escalating cold war that the United States has been waging against China.