Far East and in 1989 the UK's 17th largest export market worldwide. British exports to Hong Kong in 1989 totalled £1,112 million (1988: £1,031 million). British imports from Hong Kong in 1988 totalled £2,037 million (1988:
£1,788 million). A substantial proportion of British imports from Hong Kong in recent years have consisted of textiles and clothing.
11. Government revenue in 1990/91 is projected to be
HK$91. billion (approximately £6.9 billion), the majority of which comes from direct and indirect taxes, land
transactions and payments for Government services.
Government expenditure will be HK$90.1 billion
(approximately £6.8 billion). After three years of budget deficits, Hong Kong returned to balanced budgets in 1985-86, and surpluses since. The small surplus of HK$720 million
(compared to HK$9.2 billion in 1989/90) reflects a
commitment by government to improve infrastructure. Public
spending as a proportion of GDP is likely to increase over
the next few years. The main areas of Government spending include social and community services (health, education, transport), Security (defence, police, immigration) and economic and general services (ports, airports and
administration). The much smaller surplus reflects the combination of slow growth in revenues and heavy spending commitments arising from the Government's amibitious plans for improving the infrastructure.
12.
The financial sector in Hong Kong has grown rapidly in both domestic and international importance in recent years. Hong Kong now ranks as one of the world's leading international financial centres. Unlike most major
economies, Hong Kong has no central bank. The Commission of Banking is responsible for supervising financial institutions, while the Exchange Fund manages foreign exchange reserves and operates on the Hong Kong money
market, and ensures that the Hong Kong dollar stays at the fixed rate against the US Dollar of HK$7.80 = US$1 which has
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