containers
In 1990, Hong Kong's loading and unloading volume of
reached 5.1 million standard containers,
second only to Singapore, ranking the second in the
world.
Hong Kong is an international tourism centre:
In 1990, 5.93 million tourists visited Hong Kong
this figure is bigger than its local population.
and
Although Hong Kong is known for far more than the
above-mentioned
centres", yet they are
"international
more than sufficient to explain why Hong Kong can always
maintain its international balance of payments in spite
of trade deficits.
People might ask: You have listed so many
what about their prospects after 1997? I can tell
any hesitation that the Chinese
without
"centres",
you
Government,
in
Hong
formulating its principles and policies vis-a-vis
Kong, has taken full account of and made due arrangements
for this. In the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China
to be implemented as of 1 July 1997, adopted and
promulgated by the National People's Congress last year,
reliable legal guarantees have been provided for the
maintenance and development of a series of "international
centres".
For instance, the Basic Law stipulates in Article
that
the
Government
6
of the Hong Kong
109
Special
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