Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam points to violent protesters as ‘root of problems’ while city’s economy heads towards negative

Lam says government has announced relief measures as the city’s economy entered a technical recession, but such measures would only ‘cure the symptoms, not the roots’ of the issue

She said the city could miss the government’s revised growth forecast of anywhere between 0 and 1 per cent this year, entering negative territory

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Published: 1:52pm, 29 Oct 2019Updated: 3:52pm, 30 Oct 2019

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on Tuesday blamed violent protesters for Hong Kong’s economic woes, accusing them of “finding excuses” to unleash chaos as the city headed towards a full year contraction.

Lam said on Tuesday the government had announced relief measures as the city’s economy entered a technical recession, but such measures would only “cure the symptoms, not the roots” of the issue.

“We are likely to have negative economic growth for the full year in 2019,” she said.

“To get to the root of the problems, we must stop violence and let calmness restore in the city … but it was unfortunate that on Sunday and last night, rioters found some excuses, and engaged in extreme violence.”

She said the city could miss the government’s revised growth forecast of anywhere between 0 and 1 per cent this year, down from the 3 per cent growth seen last year. Third-quarter figures for Hong Kong’s economy were due on Thursday.

Lam did not mention the impact of the ongoing US-China trade war on Hong Kong’s economy, but did urge various sectors to support the government and police in curbing lawlessness.

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