Hong Kong could roll out relief measures to buttress economy, amid domestic unrest and US-China trade war
- Finance chief tells nationalist tabloid Global Times the city could enter a technical recession in the third quarter
- Chan adds he is unworried by competition from mainland Chinese rivals
Hong Kong’s finance chief has said more relief measures will be rolled out if necessary, warning the protest-plagued city’s economy could enter a recession.
In an interview on Wednesday with nationalist tabloid Global Times, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po also said he was not worried about growing competition from Shanghai and Shenzhen, as the city had always been “free and open”.
Growth in the second quarter stood at 0.6 per cent year on year. But Chan noted that the city’s economy had shrunk on a quarter-to-quarter basis, citing the impacts of political unrest and the Sino-US trade war. He warned the downward trend was set to continue in the third quarter.
“Once this happens, Hong Kong would technically plunge into economic recession,” he told the newspaper, which is owned by Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily.
“The economic situation of the fourth quarter will depend on whether the social turmoil can be alleviated as soon as possible.”