Help Hong Kong businesses weather US-China trade war with quicker free-trade deals, government urged
Chairman of one of the biggest local business chambers, who recently visited Washington with government delegation, says city ‘already trapped in the middle’
Hong Kong businesses badly need new markets as the China-US trade war rages on, a business leader has said, urging the government to help them export.
Jimmy Kwok Chun-wah, chairman of one of the city’s largest business chambers, the Federation of Hong Kong Industries, said officials should speed up work on free-trade deals with other countries.
Since firing the first shot in the trade war in July with a series of tariffs, the United States has slapped 10 per cent tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese products. China hit back with a 5 per cent to 10 per cent levy on US$60 billion worth of American goods.
Almost half of the Chinese goods shipped via Hong Kong to the US will be affected by the tariffs, according to commerce minister Edward Yau Tang-wah. The US is Hong Kong’s second-largest trade partner.
“The government should accelerate trade talks or enter interim arrangements for individual sectors to help ease the Hong Kong business sector’s woes,” Kwok said. “[US President Donald] Trump may change his tactics on China at any time, and Hong Kong is already trapped in the middle.”