Hong Kong exports continue to slump, falling 7.4 per cent in May, as pandemic and China-US ties hammer demand
- Exports drop to HK$317.6 billion against a year ago, while imports tumble 12.3 per cent
- Covid-19 and worsening ties between two economic superpowers weakening demand, census department says
Exports slid to HK$317.6 billion (US$40.97 billion) year on year, while imports fared even worse, dropping 12.3 per cent drop to HK$331.3 billion, the Census and Statistics Department revealed on Monday. This left a trade deficit of HK$13.7 billion for May.
A government spokesman said the poor performance of exports underlined subdued regional trade flows, notably across Asian markets.
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“Hong Kong’s export performance will remain under pressure in the near term,” he said. “The continued spread of Covid-19 in various places of the world is still a key threat to the global economy.”
Another factor undermining demand came from the further souring of US-China political and economic ties, according to the spokesman.
For the first five months of the year, exports shrank 8 per cent against the same period last year and imports were down 9.8 per cent.
The Hong Kong Trade and Development Council earlier this month downgraded its export forecast for the year, estimating they would fall 10 per cent – which would be the worst in a decade – from a 2 per cent drop predicted last December.
Ryan Lam Chung-wang, head of research at Shanghai Commercial Bank, said the US-China trade war, which had brought tit-for-tat measures between the two economic superpowers, and the pandemic posed additional threats to Hong Kong’s trade prospects.